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Book ^l__ 



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THE 

LIFE 

OP 
THE 

GOVERNOR GENERAL OF SCOTLAND, 

AND HERO OF THE 

SCOTTISH CHIEFS. 

CONTAINING HIS PARENTAGK, ADVP]NTURE3, HEROIC 

ACHIEVEMENTS, lairRISOrVMENTS AND DEATH ; 

DRAWN FROM AUTHENTIC MATERIALS 

OF SCOTTISH HISTORY. 

BY PETER DONALDSON. 

Chirurgeon^ of the Storc-Moimi'Lock. 

— *.»-i— 

HARTFORD, 

PUBLISHED BY ANDRUS AND JUDD. 



^ 



THE AUTHOR'S ADDRESS, . 

TO ALL TRUE HEARTED CALEDOJVMJYS. 



h appears no easy undeilaking Caledonians, to write the liis- 
tory and do justice to the character of the most illustrious Gen- 
eral, consumate Statesinati and courageous Warrior, that ever 
graced the pages of history, the invincible Hero of Scotland, Sir 
William Wallace, the subject of the subsequent Memoir. 

Togiveajust history of tiie life, adventures and heroic ac- 
tions of that unparalleled Hero of Caledonia, who was equally 
qualified, by extraordinary natural endowments and martial ac- 
quirements, to excel in the administrations of the Cabinet and 
Tactics of the field, would require a cliaracter in letters equal to 
thai of his hero in peace a::d in war, in the Court and in the 
field, no ordinary pen can do justice to the name of such achief- 
taui ; no common intellect can value his merits; no ignoble scul 
can estimate the worth of such a conqueror ; let the annals of 
Caledonia display his glories ; let the pages of her histories speak 
forth his virtues ; let lier biographies depict the renowned cha- 
racter of their Hero : and let his mamianimous deeds be engrav- 
ed on the memories of all her true-hearted patriots, as lonf as 
the sun shall endure. ° 

In whatever light we vicvvr that illustrious warrior, emotions 
of love and glory will rise in our hearts, and will irresistibly lead 
us to behold him as an example worthy of imitation, and a sub- 
ject of admiration either as a Christian or a Hero. This is the 
great reason I have for writing a history of the Chieftain, it be- 
nig well known that example has a more powerful influence on 
the human mind than precept, as it predisposes to design, stim- 
ulates to action, and directs how-to proceed with success, in the 
paths of virtue and glory. It awakens the dormant energies of 

A Z 



6 ADDRESS. 

the soul, and raises the spirits of men, to display the vigour oi 
their minds, in the most exalted achievements. 

The character of the illustrious Sir William Wallace is replete 
••vith exemplary virtues and heroic actions, which are both cal- 
culated to embolden the soul and impassion the heart of every 
true-blooded -S'cotsman. His patriotism, generotity, penetration, 
knowledge of humai. nature, address, courage, fortitude, perse- 
verance, endurance and prudence, rank him among the greatest 
heroes of the world. Nay, such a degree of martial eminence 
distinguished his career, that it is impossible to select a wanior 
of ancient or modern times, who can equal him in greatness, or 
be compared to him in dignity and magnanimity. 

The history of human nature, as it is exhibited in the Scot- 
tish character, amply demonstrates that no means have been 
more successful, no motive more powerful, to raise the native 
energy and to stimulate the native valour of Scotsmen, than 
to give a lively and accurate description of those wars 
in v-'hich their heroic fathers encountered dangers, endured 
hardships, braved death, nobly conquered or bravely died 
in defence of the rights and liberties of their native coun- 
try. Is there a young Scotsman in existence, who glories in be- 
ing a native of Scotland, that free and independent Caledonia, 
that can read the wonderful achievements of Sir William Wal- 
lace, and of those heroes who fought under his banner, without 
feeling a portion of that generous and magnanimous flame which 
fired his soul, directed his councils, and sharpened his claymore ? 
Is there an aged Scotsman in existence, who glories in being a 
native of Caledonia, that can recount the glories of her chieftains 
and her warriors, without being fired with a love of his country ? 
Can any Scotsman divest liimself of this natural love and fight 
against his country ? If there be any such among us, let them 
be deemed traitors to Caledonia. Awake ! awake ! to ancient 
sentiments of courage ; display your native souls, ye true heart- 
ed sons of Caledonia ? Ri/ack, Ruack, Chehodi! 

You well know, Caledonians, that Sir William Wallace was 
the most noble and magnanimous of all the chieftains of Scot- 
land ; that he has been admired for his singular virtues and fa- 
mous exploits, upwards of five hundred years, not only by those 
of his own nation, but kings, princes and people of distant coun- 
tries of the earth courted his favour. And I am conscious, that 
his name will be recorded in the pages of our histories, and in the 
memories of his affectionatecountrymen, till theconsummation of 
the natural world. None of the heroes of antiquity, even in 
their poetical characters, shone with more illustrious virtues 
than did Sir William Wallace ; none of the warrior's of Britain, 
ever merited the love, esteem, veneration and remembrance of 
his countrymen more than he has done in restoring their natural 
rights and liberties, in repairing the honour and glory of the na- 



ADDRESS. 



tion and in redressing their wrongs. All his superior wisdom, all 
his stren<rth and valour of soul and body, were gratuitously em- 
n oved in the services of his country. In his government he d.s- 
nS the laws of equity and justice, in his campaigns he procur- 
edtheiriiberty and independence; in his admmistrat.ons he pre- 
served the people froui tlie anarchy of sedition at home, and 
maintained their rights against the designs of foreign invasion - 
Ue was the Friend of man, the Protector of their persons t e 
Preserver of their liberties and their laws, the Deftn i- 
er of their rights and Avenger of their wrongs. None in the 
thir eeub ce'ntury was found a parallel to his character none 
he annals of human history or tradition had the wf are .. 
their country nearer their hearts. Born the benefactoi of hi. 
country he united all the qualities necessary for an illustrious ch- 
eer Nature seems to have endued htm with all the transcenc- 
ant virtues of greatness, dignity, fortitude, integrity, be"evolenco 
goodness and^severity of soul, that endeared h,m_ to the hea.t, o 
^11 men- she endued him with such an amazing strength ai'. 
i,ardinp4 of l^ody too, that rendered him at once the glory ot h,s 
companions in arms, and terror of his enemies in war. de w;-.. 
caled by his country to tlie defenceofherl.bert.es; he nobly 
vindicated her rights, and triumphed gloriously over her enem.es; 
he thrice delivered his country from the dominion of a fore.gn 
usu per ; he thrice laid the pillar, of her national mdepe.Klence 
on the foundations of unalterable equity and Justice, with a w.s- 
dom in the cabinet equal to his glory in the field ; and the love o. 
is cmm ry shone conspicuously through ail his ad.ninistrat.ons 
and -ichievements. He accepted the reins of government to save 
his countrv from a foreign invader ; he w.eld.d h.s Clay.no.e to 
maintain her rights and liberties ; he voluntarny resigned them 
onre^rrve her^peace, and retired into the shades of a pnvate 
\-fe o heal her bleeding wounds. A spectacle so grand and 
sublime was contemplate^d by the people of d.fterent regmns of 
the earth, with the profoundest admiration. Tne name ot Wal- 
hce was revered by his friends and dreaded by h.senem.os 
veil kings of other nations courted liis favour; the robbers of the 
ocean bowed to his invincible arm ; the power of England wa. 
rn'shed by him, and his fame resounded from the uttermos 
Wdaries of Europe and Isles of the ocean. H.s highest 
ambition was the happiness of his country, .-"^the w'e fare of 
her sons He was brave in his youth, invincible m battle, illus- 
U-ious in all social virtues, unparalleled in magna.um.ty, and 
Ireat in his death, bequeathing to posterity the 'nherit^^-je ^^ 
valour, which have been sufficient to ra.sea monument of esteem 
In the glowing hearts of his country.i.en in all s^'^'^ydmg ages^ 
He livid the unrivalled ornament of his age, and departed in 
possession of the praises of an affectionate, mourrimg people. 



8 



ADDRESS. 



The history of such a Hero will doubtless be hailed by all 
true-hearted Scots with joy. It will contain a circumstantial 
nai-rative of the most famous war, that ever occupied the sons 
and fields of Britain, carried on between the realms of England 
and Scotland for the space of forty years : the one unjustly in- 
vading^ the other nobly defending the rights and liberties o'f de- 
voted Caledonia. A war which produced amazing alteraticms 
both in the general government, and in the rising and falliii'^ of 
mnny families of distinction in the nation ; the one betrayin'-'^ihe 
other maintaining her liberties and her laws. And to render tlie 
whole of the history of this renowned warrior complete and con- 
sistent, we shall here enumerate the causes, occasions, nece-«i- 
ties, &c. of that war, in which our hero so nobly signalized liini- 
self as the just governor, the wise legislator, the benevolent pro- 
tector of his country. When Alexander the III., king of Scot- 
land, who terminated a succession of Princes that swayed the 
Scottish sceptre for the space of eight hundred years, was killed 
by a lall from his horse over the west craigs of Kinghorn, he left 
no issue of his body to succeed him on the throne, and his -M-nnri 
daughter Margaret of Norway, commonly called the Ma]d of 
Norway, became the nearest heiress to the crown. She bein'- nn 
infant at the time of the king's death, a Convention of tlie^Ks- 
tates of Parliament was held at Scone, and the immediate gov- 
ernment of the kingdom was committed to the administration of 
Six Regents, WiUiam Frazer, Bishop of St. Andrews, Duncan 
Macduff, Earl of Fife, Alexander Cummin, Earl of Buchan, Ro- 
bert Wiseheart, Bishop of Glasgow, John Cunmiin, Lord of Ba- 
denoch, and James Stewart, the Grand Steward of Scotland, 
who governed the realm for the space of seven years. Durin'r 
this period, Edward the I. King of England, knowing that his 
sister's grand daughter, child of the King of Norway, was ihe on- 
ly surviving person of all the posterity of Alexander, as hwful 
he.ress to the kingdom of .Scotland, was ambitious, and sent Am- 
bassadors to the Estates to desire Margaret of Norway in mar- 
riage for his eldest son, Edward, with a design to annex Scotland 
to the dominions of his crown. 

Ambassadors from Edward of England, and Eric of Norwav 
met at Bryham, near Shelson, on the 18th of July, 1290, witli full 
powers to negotiate and settle the conditions of the marriage.— 
The Parliament agreed to the marriage, as being advantag^eous 
to the Kingdom ; but they took good care in settling tne condi- 
tions, that all provisions were made to secure the independence 
of the kingdom in case of death, and to guard against every dan- 
ger that might arise from so near an alliance witii so powerful 
and ambitious a monarch. In the matrimonial treaty it was 
stipulated that the Scots should enjoy their ancient laws, liber- 
ties and customs ; that in case Edward and Margaret should be 



ADDilESS. 9 

without any issue, the kingdom should return free, independent 
and absolute, to the next Scottish heir ; that in oase Edward 
shoiihl die before Margaret, without issue by her, the body of 
Margaret should.be remitted to Scotland free and independent ; 
that the military tenants of the crown, and other subjects, should 
riot be obliged to do homage to him ; to swear fealty ; to elect or 
bb elected to any office, or to do service in any place that had 
usually been performed in Scotland ; that the kiiigdoui of Scot- 
land slioiilfl iiave its Chancellor, Officers of State, Courts of Jus- 
tice and all other public courts, as formerly ; that a new great 
seal should be made and kept by the Chancellor, with the ordi- 
nary arms of Scotland, and the name of no one, but the Queen 
engraved upon it ; that all papers and records belonging to the 
crown should be lodged within the Kingdom, that no duties, tax- 
es or levies of snen, should be raised in Scotland, but such as had 
been usual ; that the King of England should pay the Pope one 
hundred tlinusand pounds, for the use of the Holy Wars ; and 
tiiat iiinisolf and liis dominions should be excommunicated and 
laid under an interdict if lie did not religiously observe all these 
Articles 

These articles were agreed to and ratified by Edward. After 
reading those stipulations, which seemed to have been formed by 
the wisest heads and established on the surest foundations, who 
can say " that th.e Scots of those ages were an ignorant and bar- 
barous people," as some have inferred ? no better precautions 
could have been devised by the most enlightened statesman of 
posterior ages to secure the liberty and independence of the 
kingdom. 

Treacherous Edward, Caledonians, difl not hold his treaties sa- 
cred, and he violated his contract a short time after its ratifica- 
tion, by appointing one of his subjects to act in Scotland as Lieu- 
tenant for his son, requiring the Scots to deliver up all their Cas- 
tles and strong holds into his hands, which clearly manifested 
his designs to wrest the terms of the treaty to answer the purpo- 
ses of nis ambition, regardless of the conditions of it, that were 
any wise unfavourable to his views. Edward to efiect his ends 
in a more formal manner, applied to the Pope for a dispensation 
to sanction a marriage between his son and his good jiiece, the 
Maid of Norway, who was not yet marriageable. Having ob- 
tained his object and regained the friendship of the Scottish no- 
bles, he joined with them in applying to the King of Norway, to 
ratify his treaty, by sending the young Queen home to her king- 
dom. The Norwegian King was unwilling to transmit his young 
child to the care of strangers, but the importunities and artifices 
of Edward and persuasions of the Scots, prevailed upon^him to 
send his daughter. The fond hopes of the Scots and Edward 



10 ADDRESS. 

were totally frustrated, in the death of the young Princess, «n 
the Orkney Isles, where the Ambassadors were obliged to convey 
her on shore, on account of her sickness. 

The Estates of Scotland soon perceived the coming confusion 
of a disputed succession, intestine discord, and an unavoidable 
war with the ambitious Monarcli of England. The death of 
their young Queen bereaved them of the surest pledge of peace 
and liberty, and was attended with the most fatal consequences 
that ever followed the demise of the greatest personages. 

lf\ tliis disputed succession, two principal competitors out of 
thirteen, who seemed to have prospects of ascending the Throne, 
appeared first to enter their respective claims to the Kingdom. 
Deverguild the daughter of Margaret, the first daughter of Da- 
vid, Earl of Huntington ; and Robert Bruce, the son of Isabel 
the second daughter of David, Earl of Huntingtoti, respectively 
claimed the crown. Deverguild, because she was the nearest 
Heiress ; the grand son of David, Bruce, because he was the 
nearest Heir, the grand son of David. Deverguild's pretensions 
were grounded on the custom of the country, wherel)y the near- 
est Heir or Heiress, descended from the same David, through an 
eldest daughtei, and Bruce, insisted on the Sex, proving, that 
males, in equal degrees of propinquity of blood ought to be pre- 
ferred before females ; so he denied ihe justice of a grand daugh- 
ter, inheriting the Kingdom, while a grandson, even of a second 
daughter was alive. Bruce also contended that he was a degree 
nearer in his claims to the tlirone, being a grandson, than John 
Baliol, who was only a great grandson ; as for Deverguild, who 
stood in an equal degree, he was to be preferred to a female 
Heiress. The Scottish Parliament could not decide this contro- 
versy at home, because of the powers of each party, the whole 
laud being divided in two equal factions, which although it 
should have been equitably determined by the Estates, would 
not have stood to the award, whence a civil war would have been 
the consequence. So they unanimously chose Edward, King of 
England, Umpire in Arbitration, in this important affair. The 
majority of the Arbitrators decided it in favour of John Baliol, 
although he was inferior in powers and popularity. Edv/ard, 
knowing this circumstance went to Bruce, whom, being legally 
cast by tiieir votes, he thouglit would accept of the crown under 
him, Bruce answered him in the following words., " I am not 
so eager of a crown as io accept of it, by abridging the liberty my 
ancestors have left me," and he was immediately dismissed. — 
Edward then offered the under-government of the realm to Ba- 
liol, who greedily accepted it under any condition he pleased to 
propose to him. ' So Baliol was crowned, and declared King of 
Scotland, at Scone, six years and nine montiis after the death 
of Alexander. 



ADDRESS. 11 

In a short time after the coronation of Balio], Duncan Mac- 
duit", Earl of Fife, was murdered by the Abernethians, which 
was then a rich and powerful family, in Scotland, and who had 
previously accused Macduff's brother before the Assembly of 
kstates of depriving them of their lawful possessions: Baliol 
decided in favour of the Abernethians, and Macduff was there- 
by dispossessed of the lands in dispute. Macduff was doubly 
displeased at the partial Xing, because he was injured, and be- 
cause the murderers of his brother were left unpunislied. He 
immediately appealed to Edward and desired that Baliol might 
iie made to answer before liim, touching the matter and his deci- 
sion ; Baliol was not permitted in parliament to reply by proctor, 
l)ut compelled to plead his own cause in a lower place of the bouse. 
He bore t'.ie afibont silently for the present, but as soon as he de- 
parted, fiames of anger and revenge burned in his breast. He 
occuj)ied all iiis time for sometime afterwards, in conciliating 
the minds of iiis sul)jects, and in nieditalp.ig revenge on Ed- 
ward by a general revolt. MeatUime a controversy arose be- 
tween the French and the English, whicii terminated in a war. 
Enibassies came from botli nations ; the Frencli sent Ambassa- 
dors to renew tlie ancient league, tlic Englisii sent them to de- 
mand aids from their Scottish. Provincials, in the war. Both 
Embassies, were referred to the Council of the Estates, wlio, 
being prone to vindicate their independence, decided to renew 
the league with France, and to renounce all allegiance to Eng- 
land, and to retrieve the loss of tliejr rights and liberties. 

Edward imm.ediately made a truce with the French in order 
to chastise the Scots, hoping to subdue them in a single cam- 
paign. Accordingly he sent his fleet, designed for France, 
against Scotland, The Scots attacked this fleet in die mouth of 
of the river Tweed, destroyed and took eigliteen of their shi[)s 
and put the rest to flight. Edvvarti when he heard of this disas- 
ter, gave loose to his furious temper and breathed out revenge. 
Edward then carried a great army into Scotland, attacked B«?r- 
wick, but could not take it. He then pretended to abandon the 
siege and caused a rumour to be spread by some Scots ofBruce's 
party, wliom he himself had fostered, that he dispaired of carry- 
ing it, and that Baliol was coming with a large army to raise the 
siege. Upon which rumour all the chief men of the Scots garrison 
issued forth unsuspectingly to receive tiieir King honourably, in a 
promiscuous multitude, horse and foot. At that fatal moment, 
Edward sent a company of horse among them and killed and 
rode them down, seized the nearest gate, and took the town. — ■ 
Then he followed with his foot, and slaughtered all sorts of peo- 
ple. Seven thousand Scots were slain in that inauspicious dav 
with all the flower of the nobility of Lothian and Fife. O yc 
credulous and unsusppcting Caledonians, why did you lay your- 



12 ADDRESS. 

selves open to subtle Edward's stratagems ! then Edward sue 
cessively defeated the Scots, reduced all the garrisons, took Ba- 
liol, and sent him to the Towtr of London. He then summon- 
ed all the surviving Nobles to attend him at Berwick, and com- 
pelled them to swear fealty to him, appointing John Warren, 
Commander in Chief, and Hugh Cressingham, Lord Chief Jus- 
tice in his conquered Provinces of Scotland, During this state 
of subjection, wlien all the Castles and strong holds of the coun- 
try were garrisoned by English soldiers, and the whole land 
groaned under a foreign usurpation for nine years, the noble soul 
of Sir William Wallace could not rest to see his country rav- 
aged by sanguinary oppressors. Thus, when the nobility had 
neither power nor courage to undertake their own liberation, 
William Wallace, a man descended of an ancient and no- 
ble family, arose to restore her liberties and maintain her 
rights. 



THE LIFE 

ADVENTURES AND ACHIEVEMENTS, 

OF THE CELEBRATED 

SIB. WZi;.3^IA2!^ WAZiXiAai:, 

GOVERNOR GENERAL OF SCOTLAND. 



SIR WILLIAM AVALLACE was descended of 
an ancient and noble family. He was the son of Sir 
Malcom Wallace, of Ellerslie, whose progenitors were 
the ancient knights and baronets of Craigie. His 
mother was daughter of Sir Ronald Crawford, High 
Sheriff of Ayre. He was born in 1288, during the 
reign of William, surnamed the Lion, and the usur- 
pation of Donald, Lord of the isles. In his childhood, 
he lived with his parents at Ellerslie, and fled with 
them from place to place during Edward's nine years' 
usurpation and oppression, in domineering over them, 
when their country was reduced to a mere province 
under the martial laws of foreign invaders. 

Sir William Wallace, even in his youth, before he 
arrived at the seventeenth year of his age, could not 
refrain from molesting the oppressors of his country. 
For, in 1302, when Edward cruelly oppressed the 
land, had destroyed all the ancient monuments and 
records, and shed much innocent blood, INlalcom Wal- 
lace, the fiither of our hero, was forced to flee with 
his eldest son Malcom, into Lemiox, among his re- 
^ B 



14 THE LIFE OP 

lations, to avoid the fury of the English soldiers, and 

Crawford, his mother, retired to Kilspendie, in 

the Carse ofGowrie, upon the banks of the Tay, in 
Perthshire, and lived privately with her son William, 
in his uncle's house, during the time of war and blood- 
shed. Thence William Wallace was sent to Dundee, 
and was educated by John Blair, who afterwards be- 
came his chaplain, and lived to record Lis adventures. 
As he advanced towards his seventeenth year, he be- 
came a youth of nncommon sprightliness, gaiety, 
beauty, comeliness, and elegance, and endued with 
great agility and superior strength of body and mind. 
His peculiar dress distinguished him among the peo- 
ple and the oppressors of his country, who held the 
town of Dundee, and all other towns of the land by 
military garrisons, were the object of his hatred. He 
was clotlied in garments of gemming green, had a 
Tartan bonnet on his head, a philabeig down to his 
knees. Tartan hose upon his legs up to the middle of 
the calves, and a plaid over his shoulders, according 
to the ancient custom of the Scottish nation. Indeed 
he was a noble and comely youth, both in dignity of 
soul and majesty of stature, in vigour of intellect, and 
singular strength of body. When he arrived at the 
30th year of his age he was full nine quarters high 
in stature, three quarters broad between the shoul- 
ders ; had big, weil-siiaped, brawny limbs ; a strong, 
sonorious voice ; burning brown hair ; light eye- 
brows, quick, piercing, bright eyes ; long, round and 
well-proportioned visage ; a neat square nose ; round 
ruddy lips ; a high breast ; a thick strong neck : 
large long arms, with swinging hands ; a fine san- 
guine colour in countenance ; a beautiful face ; with 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 15 

becoming gravity of speech ; mildness in peace and 
fierceness in war, that distinguished him from the rest 
of mankind.. 

On W^allace's virtues, and his person rare, 
None in liis age could e'er with him compare. 

His strength was equal to two of that of Robert 
Bruce, and the strength of Bruce was equal to that of 
any other two highland Scots. His sword was a strong, 
long, massy, broad claymore, of the best tempered 
steel, about five feet in Ifength, made to be wielded 
with both hands occasionally, well calculated to sweep 
the field of battle, and make dreadful chasms in the 
ranks of his enemies. He always wore a steel cap 
and helmet on his head ; an armour of the closest and 
best workmanship ; two gloves of steel ; a close 
habergeon : an orby shield of impenetrable material ; 
a dagger hanging at his belt ; and all covered with 
a mantle, plaid cloak, or priest's gown in disguise, 
when he lurked in the hills, and spied places and par- 
ties of his enemies. He had no harness for his face, 
choosing rather to leave it bare for the shield's and 
claymore's defence. 

Young Wallace, even in his youth, before he was 
able to wield his broad claymore or glittering spear, 
grieved at the injuries done to his country by their 
cruel oppressors. His soul boiled with inward rage 
at their barbarities, and he was fired with the passion 
of avenging the blood of his countrymen, and the pol- 
lution of his countrywomen, whom the English had 
killed or ravaged in all parts of the land. " Alas, 
said Wallace, shall my country suffer such tyranny, 
and shall the Southerons daily increase to devour the 
residue of our fields, possess our habitations, cities, 



16 THE LIFE OF . 

towns, villages, deflour our maidens and kill our sons ? 
Oh that I had ten thousand at my command, I, even 
I in my youth, would crack their curpons,'' and be- 
gan to contend with individual Saxons, and often de- 
prived them of tliGU' lives in open combat, as the sub- 
sequent history will show. 

One day, it happened before he left Dundee, just 
at the commencement of his martial career, that an 
insolontyoung Englishman, the son of Selbie,the Con- 
stable of the town, insulted him and attempted to wrest 
his knife from him, uttering the following insult, " Scot 
what the de'il clad yon in a suit so gay, a horse's 
mantle is the apparel of your kind, and a Scot's whit- 
tle at your belt rough roulin shoe^, or any common 
trash, serve such whore's sons, to plash through the 
dubs ; give me that knife, hanging under thy girdle," 
and immediately endeavoured to snatch it from him 
by force ; but Wallace would not be deprived or rob- 
bed of his knife, and replied, " Nay, pardon me, Sir, 
I know better things, forbear, I entreat thee, it both 
defends me and cuts my meat/' Young Selbie, how- 
ever, would not desist, and Wallace would not be in- 
sulted and robbed of his knife, neither could he en- 
dure such an affront or insult with impijnity. He 
seized young Selbie by the collar and instantly dis- 
patched him on the spot, in the midst of his compan- 
ions. The guard pursued him in great fury to avenge 
the death of the young squire at the expense of the 
blood of Wallace, who being amazingly strong and 
swift of foot, escaped out of their hands, sparing none 
who attempted to stop his flight. 

The Saxons keenly pursued him, and being ex- 
hausted with running, he rushed into an Inn, which 



SIR v^^LLIA^l Wallace, it 

he knew to be a harbour for the oppressed Scots, cry- 
ing, " Help, help, save my hfe from cruel Southeron 
law," the good woman of the house, who perceived 
his dangerous predicament, quick as lightning dressed 
him in a russet gown, covered his head with an old 
soiled curcii, put a white worn cap on his hend over 
all, and set Jiim down to spin, just as the furious sol- 
diers entered the house in search of him ; she gave 
him the rock and the distaff, and he began to spiii 
;md sing, and appeared totally-indifferent at the sud- 
den appearance of the Saxon guards in search of 
Wallace. There he hummed hi? song and spun, un- 
til they departed to some other p^ace in pursuit of 
him ; then he revived — he laughed and rejoiced at 
his own escape, and in their disappointment. 

The guards 'then ran up and down like furious 
madmen, crying " Burn the Scots, burn the Scots, 
leave none of them alive in town ;" but the good wo- 
man kept young Wallace until night, secured him 
from the hand of the Southerons ; and in the morn- 
ing long before day conveyed him secretly through 
a back path v»hich led privately along the rivulet, 
which ran tln^ough the town, and he quickly escaped 
to his uncles retreat in the Carse of Gowrie. 

Meantime his mother having heard of the great 
peril of her son, her beloved young William, despair- 
ed of his life among the cruel Southerons, and pro- 
ceeded in all haste and anxiety to see what became 
of him. To her great surprise and joy she met him 
hasting to Kilspindle. The benevolent old parent 
could not refrain from tears, when he began to tell her 
of dispatching young Selbie, the pursuit of his ene- 
nxies, and his providential escape from their sangui- 
B 2 



18 THE LIFE OF 

nary hands ; she exclaimed in expressions of dread, 
gladness and sorrow, ^' Oh bless me, my son, can I 
believe mine eyes? is it possible that you have passed 
the danger? sure Providence is more than kind in the 
last extremity of fortune." And as he informed her 
of his dangerous situation she wept and often said in 
sighs and tears, " Alas ! my son, ere you leave off 
your pranks thine enemies will fang thee." " Mither," 
answered young Wallace, '' I would rather see them 
hanged upon a tree, methinks we should withstand 
these Southeron oppressors, that possess our land." 
His aged uncle soon^ received the doleful news of 
Selbie's death and of Wallace's peril ; was filled with 
grief, and dreaded the consequence of such a rash act 
to the adventurous youth. Meantime the English 
held a court of Justice at Dundee and prepared to 
avenge the death of their squire Selbie on the heads of 
the Scots, and Wallace could sojourn no longer at 
Kilspindie with bis uncle, in the Carse of Gowrie. His 
mother clothed herself in the garments of a pilgrim, 
and disguised her son, and departed in great haste to 
their relations in Dunipace, in Sterlingshire, where a 
great Parson of an opulent estate, a devout man, 
named Richard Wallace, his paternal Uncle, who en- 
tertained them with every kind of hospitality and con 
yersation, about the great tribulations of the land, 
intreating them to remain with him, till God should 
send better days. But brave Wallace replied in the 
ardour of his soul, " I hasten to the west, our kind 
kindred are massacred there ; were I at home I would 
be avenged on the English for the blood of my rela- 
tions." The grave old Pareon sighed in goodness, 
saying, «I doubt that it will be long eW that time 
come; " come weal, come woe," answered Wallace, 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 19 

" I will pursue my purpose." The old man incul- 
cated the national maxim on his mind, i. e. " that li- 
berty was the best oi' human blessingS; and that with- 
onl it life was not worth enjoying," which cherished 
the best of his genuis, and matured those dispositions 
wiiich were to bless his country, and gain him the 
laurels of immortal fame; and he bade his uncle 
" Adieu.'' Wallace and his mother winged their 
flig^it to Ellerslie, and in the morning sent for Sir 
Ronald Crawford, her brothe-;, who informed them, 
witli sorrow of heart and tears, that her husband, and 
her eldest son, William's t^atlier and brother, were 
slain by the cruel English soldiers. He told them of 
the valour of JMalcom AVallace ; how he hewed the 
English down after his hough sinews were cut, and 
Maicom, the younger, who fell in the field of Loch- 
rirrr:ben5 in defence of their country. The soul of 
ycung William was Hred on that relation with love 
an J glory, and desire of vengeance ; and he secretly 
designed to retaliate on the heads of the English iit 
SCLlie future period, when time and opportunity should 
il'Srve his ends. 

Blrs. Wallace, his mother, persuaded Sir Ronald 
Crawford, ner brother, to petition Lord Percy, then 
I^i'3utenant General of Scotland, for permission to live 
cii:etly at Ellerslie, for she was bowed down with 
sorrow and cares in a good old age. Sir Ronald ob- 
tahied a protection for his sister, but "William Wallace 
dkdained to remain under their protection, and pro- 
ceeded to Richardstown, and lived some tiine with 
Ms uncle Sir Richard Wallace, who had been a v/ar- 
- " 2' of great valour, renown, wisdom, and opulence, 
jlace arrived at his^ uncles house in February, and 



20 THE LIFE OF 

in April went out for diversion and amusement, to 
•angle in the water of Irvine, not dreading the attack 
of his enemies. But, having fished successfully for 
some hours, accompanied with a boy to carry the bag, 
Lord Percy and his suite came riding along, and 
excited some degree of uneasiness in the mind of 
Wallace, because he had forgot to bring his sword 
with him. Five of Percy's guards in green uniform, 
mounted on their troopers, advanced to Wallace, and 
in blustering language accosted him with tyrannical 
expressions, " Zounds Scot, we shall have thy fish." 
Wallace in graceful modesty replied, " I will share the 
half with you most cheerfully." But one of them an- 
swered, " that would be too little,'' and alighted and 
snatched them all from the boy. Then Wallace said 
" I am sure in modesty you will leave us some, if ye 
are gentlemen ; let an aged Knight that lives in yon- 
der house, have some, pray be so generous." The 
English robber answered, " you clown, the river has 
enough in store, we serve a lord, who shall dine upon 
these ere long." Wallace replied in burning ven- 
geance, "Thou art in the wrong, whom hast thou 
nere, faith thou deservest a blow;" the Southeron 
then began to abuse Wallace, saying " poor prattling 
Scot, how darest thou talk so contemptuously," and 
rushed on Wallace with his drawn sword, but Wal- 
lace being dexterous and strong parried it oft' with his 
pole-staff and laid him on the ground, snatched up 
his sword and with one back stroke clave his neck in 
two. The other four pillagers, when the}'- saw their 
companions shiin in their presence, alighted from 
their horses, rushed upon Wallace with all their 
united force, and completely surrounded him; but 



I 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 21 

Wallace nobly stood his ground, against the four in 
arms, and fiercely struck at one upon the head, and 
his glancing Claymore cut through his collar-bono: 
he struck another on the arm and laid both hand and 
sword on the grpand together; another he slew with 
a back sweep of his sword, and the other two fled for 
their lives. The silly cowards informed Lord Percy, 
that three of their comrades were slain, and he saw 
their own two bloody heads, and asked them how 
many enemies diey had encountered. They answer- 
ed " ONE." " A devil surely," replied Percy, " since 
one has killed three and put two to flight, cowardly 
coxcombs pack ye out of niy sight. It seems the 

Scot has fought most manfully for me 'this day, in 
j faith he shall not be sought ; was ever such a defeat 
I heard of before in any lahd, ye whore's son's birds, 
' let a Scots pole staff command five English swords." 
I Meantime Wallace mounted one of the Southeron 
I horses, and carried the other two along with him to 

Kichardtown, to his uncle. The good old knight 
i was surprised at the news of Wallace's encounter and 
I victory, and almost fainted in the presence of his ii'> 
5 trepid nephew ; counselled him to keep it secret, con 
j eluding that " for such fishing sports you may pay 
I dearly, if it should be known." " Uncle," said the 
j undaunted Wallace, "I will push my fortune now 
^ where I can expect success, since I can no long{>r 
i evade the eye of mine enemies, I will try the English 
j. geldings how they ride." The good old man con- 
isented, and gave him a purse of gold. Wallace 

kneeled 'down and humbly took his leave, and the 
( aged knight holdinc him by the hand- said in Inve 



22 THE LIFE OF 

and aflcction, " when that is done send for more, I 
pray my dear nephew, and God speed." 

Firm to his resohition he spared neither great nor 
small of the English, who fell in his way. For those 
heroic actions he was out-lawed by them and com- 
pelled during the inclement winter of 1207, to live in 
tlic fields, the woods, the mountains and the dens of 
the earth, where he wandered exposed to all the hard- 
ships and privations that human nature could possibly 
sustain. Tiie ardent love of freedom, and his im- 
placable hatred of tJie English oppressors of his coun- 
try, harrowed up all the passions of his soul, and as 
an eagle hunting for his prey, he panted for revenge 
upun their heads. He lost no opportunity to attack 
them by surprise, while he lurked in the woods and 
mountains. 



/ 



WAILAi.E KILLS THt BULLY WITH ONE STHOKE OK HIS OWN STAFF, 
IN AT RE. 

After the angling exploit, Wallace withdraw a lit- 
tle while to Ochter-iiouse and Longland-wood, to 
avoid the fury of his enemies. When the rumour of 
his fishing sport was supposed to iiave vanished, he 
repaired to the town of Ayre, in disguise, to rocon- 
noiter his enemy's security and exposures. Ke alight- 
ed from his horse in Eonglandwood, and gravely 
walked to tlie cross in the town of Ayre, where Lord 
Percy commanded the garrison of Englishmen; ap- 
peared nothing daunted; walking briskly round, and 
Viewed all the barbarous crew, wallowing in luxuries 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 23 

and the spoils of his country. Wallace could scarce 
restrain his passion and youthful ardour against the 
cruel invaders and oppressors of his beloved country. 
But to divert his attention from manifesting his hatred 
to the enemy, Wallace went to see a huge English 
clown, who boasted greatly of his matchless strength, 
and who challenged the Scots at the bearing of bur- 
dens, and blows on his body. As Wallace approached 
him to see the sport, " I will bear a greater burden," 
said the prince of sots, '* than any three good sturdy 
Scots, or I will permit and bear a blow with a staff 
like a stage dancer's pole for one single groat from 
tlve hand of the strongest Scot." He could not re- 
frain from laughing at the temerity of the fool, and 
. said to the Champion of the Southerons, " I am ready 
' and willing for one Scot's blow, to give an English 
I slnlliiig." The v/retch immediately accepted of the 
money and soon reaped the fruits of his folly ; for 
I Wallace being actually endowed with the strength of 
I four ordinary Scots, gave him such a blow on the 
back that clave his rig bone, and he instantly sunk 
, in death. A solemn silence prevailed like a calm be- 
j fore a storm, for a few minutes, till the guards of the 
'town were informed of the death of their Champion. 
I The Southerons armed with swords and spears im- 
I mediately surrounded him ; but still he appeared un- 
I dismayed in this perilous situation, he cocked his steel 
; bonnet and began to defend himself by the same staff 
j with which he killed the churl. At the first blow he 
1 dashed out the brains of one, struck another's bayonet 
and killed him. The staff was split and riven by its 
collision with the steel of his enemy ; but happily he 
had a sword concealed within th^ skirt of his gar» 



24 THE LIFE OF 

ment, which he immediately drew with awful grace 
and majesty and swung the trubly steel to clear his 
way towards his steed. In cutting through the host 
of numerous, foes he was sorely pressed in the rear by 
two strenuous warriors. His anger was kindled, and 
like a lion in liis strengtii lie turned his eyes and swunj 
his v/eighty Claymore, slew the foremost, and clav< 
the second down through the body. Five South*^ 
erons were laid dead upon the ground, all killed b] 
one bold Scot, in the midst of hundreds of his em 
mies. In the mean time Wallace having cleared and" 
forced his way, mounted his trusty steed and scs^il- 
pered off to Longlandwood, pursued by compaoies 
of horse and foot. In tli.^ thicket of the r/ood 
he eluded the search and sight of his enemies, and 
was supplied with provisions and all necessaries 
from Ochter-house, during his concealment in Long'- 
landwood. Wallace having become impatient m his 
•lurking place, and being desirous of reviewing the 
garrison of the enemy, returned in disguise to A^-'^e. 
But ah! it proved a fatal day, I wish to Jove th^t!>.S 
had staj^ed away. 



WALLACF. KII.I.S I.OltD PIKRCV's s'TKWARTI AND IS TARE 
PRIPOXKU. 

As Sir Ronald Crawford's servant was buying Hsh 
for his master in the market of Ayre, Lord Percy's 
steward came and assaulted him in terms of the great- 
est disdain. "Scot," said the steward, "for whom 
buyest thou these fish thou carriesf." The servant 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE, 25 

answered, "Sir, for the Sheriff of A yre." J" By hea- 
ven's king," the steward rudely swore, "my lord 
shall have them, and thou mayest purchase more." 
Wallace overhearing the conversation, was incensed 
with the insultin.'^ rudeness and insolence of tills pi- 
rating steward over the humble Scots servant, and 
could no longer restrain his indignation; " wh}^ such 
rudeness, tell the reason why?'' demanded Wallace, 
and the haughty steward's blood began to boil with 
rage and he replied, " go hence thou saucy Scot, with 
speed, I mock thee and thy sheriff," and smote Wal- 
lace with.his hunting-staff; but alas! for the poor de- 
voted steward, better for him that he had kissed the 
foot of the Scot, and asked his pardon, for Wallace 
drew his mighty claymore and despatched him in the 
twinkling of an eye. In an instant a crowd assem- 
bled and eighty of the guards, well armed, surround- 
ed Wallace, wlio stared at them and never uttered a 
word ; but boldly drew his daring claymore and dash- 
ed through the ranks of his compassing enemies, 
transfixed the foremost through the body, cut the leg 
of the second at the knee and severed the head from 
the body of the third in the three resistless sweeps of 
his tremendous claymore. Thus he raged like a lion 
among his enemies, cutting his way towards the gate ; 
but alas! the enemy were strongly posted at the gate 
with swords and spears to prevent his escape. Then 
in desperation he hewed them down like Silly sheep, 
and even when they environed him with countless 
numbers he stalked through them like a living statue 
of iron, and placed himself at a wall near the sea, 
where none dare approach him, until the whole gar- 



26 THE LIPE OF 

rison Issued forth to overpower and capture a single 
Scots warrior. They mounted on a dyke and broke 
down the wall, which defended Wallace's back, and 
left him no other shift but to fight or die. His soul 
was fired with double rage and he suddenly hewed 
down great numbers of his surrounding enemies, and 
fiercely passed through them. 

But ah ! unlucky hour and fatal day ; his broad 
claymore broke ofl' at the hilt, and the small dagger 
that was in his possession was not sufficient to cope 
with English spears and lengthy swords. He slew 
three of them with his dagger before they could over- 
power him with their numbers, swords, bayonets, and 
spears. The command was given not to slay him, 
but to take him alive, that they might starve him in 
a loathsome dungeon until they should bring him to' 
a cruel and ignominious death, which, says the histo- 
rian, resembled the prison of Hell. All Scots patri- 
ots and his personal friends wept for the fall of their 
mighty chieftain ; all mourned the fate of their beloved 
Wallace ; in vain did piteous tears flow from the eyes 
of a mourning people ; none was able to release the 
hopes and glory of the nation ; and the weeping and 
the lamentation of the wives and children, as well as 
the patriots of Scotland, were sufficient to rend a 
heart of stone. Alas ! said they, can life endure to 
see our VVallace imprisoned and massacreed by the 
cruel enemies of our country ? the flower of youth 
in sweet and tender age, pine in a loathsome dun- 
geon ? can we survive the death of our deliverer and 
protector ? and who in Scotland is left to defend her 
rights, liberties and her laws," 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE- 27 

THE WIPBISONMENT AND ESCAPE OF WALLACE AT AYKE, IN AN 
EXTRAORDLNARY MANNER. 

During Wallace's imprisonment, the Southerons 
fed him on herrings and water, and offals of their 
shambles in the manner they would feed their dogs 
and swine, until death was pictured in his beauteous 
clay ; all his vital spirits done and his soul sunk with- 
in him. Whereupon in expectation of immediate 
death he solemnly addresses the God o( Mercy and 
Justice, imploring his pardon and favour on the foot- 
ing of the propitiation of Jesus Chfist, the Saviour of 
the world, in the following strain " O my God, may 
it please thee to receive my soul into the arms of thy 
sovereign mercy, or quickly loose me from the bands 
of this death, as seemeth good unto thy glorious Ma- 
jesty. Give not up this oppressed nation into the 
hands of their cruel enemies, deliver them by thy 
,«niighty hand and rescue them by thine arm from the 
snares of their malicious foes," &c. Having uttered 
this prayer he turned his lamentation on the great 
cause of his defeat, saying " O brittle sword, thy me- 
tal was not true, the breaking of thy blade threw me 
into this dungeon and subjected thousands of gallant 
Scots ; 1 trusted to thee, alas ! thou hast failed me ; 
I thought to have avenged the blood of my gallant fa- 
ther and noble uncle, and beloved brother upon the 
Southerons, who massacreed them at Lochmabcn ; 
but alas ! for my dear country, which is doomed by 
this mischance to oppression and slavery." A cruel 
flux of the belly came on and consumed the poor re- 
mains of strength in the person of Wallace, and re- 



28 THE LIFE OF 

diiced him to the brink of the grave. When they saw 
that Wallace would soon die, they commanded the 
executioner to brinjf him to the sentence of the law. 
The jailor having come and found Wallace, already 
dead, returned in great haste and reported his death. 
They all concluded to throw him over the casile wall 
as they do with the bodies of their dead dogs. But 
mysterious Providence, ever mindful of her favourites, 
'directed his fall in a soft place without the wall, so 
that his bones were not broken. There Wallace lay 
motionless and apparently lifeless, until the news of 
his death and disgraceful funeral had reached the ears 
of his old nurse who lived in Ayre, and came run- 
ning to ask permission to bear away the corpse of 
Wallace to burial. And having obtained permission, 
she carried his body home to her own house, bathed 
it in warm water, and to her great surprise and joy 
she felt his heart began to beat or flutter, and saw his 
eyes open in her presence. She immediately laid 
hira on a soft bed and caused her daughter to suckle 
him with her own milk, until he recovered strength, 
and was able to walk out to meet bis enemies. 

All this time she nourished him with good nutri- 
ment and good solace, weeping in the presence of 
his enemies, and rejoicing in the presence of his 
friends, to quiet the one and console the other. — 
Thomas the rhymer, at that time prophecied in an- 
cient Scottish rhyme, and v/as held in great estima- 
tion. He came to the pari h priest to talk of the 
troubles and calamities of their country, and just when 
Thomas was there, the priest's servant returned from 
the market of Ajre, and told, that he had seen good 
3'oung Wallace cast for dead over the castle wall. — 
The priest replied with a her.vy heart, " I hope to sec 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 29 

the Southerons smart for that cruel deed on the life 
and body of noble Wallace." Thomas observed the 
news were bad, and added," Wallace is not dead," 
and paused in pensive thought, *' The God, who hath 
made the world, and brings all things to pass for his 
own glory, if Wallace be dead, dooms Thomas to live 
no more." The priest sent his servant to the woman's 
house to know for certainty of the life or death of Wal- 
lace. The servant prayed to be introduced into the 
chamber where Wallace lay, and the woman led him 
up stairs and shewed him Wallace alive. The ser- 
vant, as soon as he saw the majesty of his person, re- 
turned in great haste, and told his master and Thomas 
the glorious news of Wallace's life, health and safety. 
Then Thomas began again to prophecy of the great- 
ness and glory of Wallace, that he would sweep the 
Southerons from the land, that thousands would fall 
at his right hand, that he should thrice deliver Scot- 
land, and be the scourge of Southerons : *hen cheer 
up, ye Scots, cast off your care, and believe what he 
should now declare. 



BATTLE OF LOUDOUN-HILL, 

Fought by Wallace to revenge the slaughter of his 
Father and Brother, 

As soon as Wallace recovered from his sickness 
produced by his imprisonment, he sent his nurse and 
her daughter who suckled him, with the rest of the 
family to EUerslie, and prepared himself for war. — 
In all his preparations he could not find a sword to 
please him, except an old rustv blade which stood in 

C 2" 



go THE LIFE OF 

the corner of the house, none seemed to be worth the I 
carryinj?. He drew it out of the scabbard and found 
th:it it would bite keenly, and was wondeifully pleas- 
ed with it, sayinj?, " Faith thou shalt go with me, till 
I ciJii procure a better," and immediately proceeded 
to Kichardtown to procure a horse and armour, that 
he mi^ht be able to encounter the English Knights, 
who were all clothed in steel and accoutred with shi- 
ning arms. 

As he ventured to travel to Richardtown, three 
Southerons riding into Ayre, met him, Longcastle and 
two yeomen, who attempted to bring him back to 
Ayre ; but Wallace drew back and would not be 
compelled to return. They turned furiously upon 
him, and despitefully accosted him, saying, " Thou 
Scot, stay, for surely thou art a spy or some thief, 
that darest not show your face." Wallace answered, 
" Sir, for God's sake let me alone, I am sick :" Long- 
casde replifd in compulsatory language, *' By George, 
thy countenance prognoisticates something odd ! to 
Ayre, thou shalt go with me," pulling out his glittering 
sword to compel him to return. W allace, who knew 
not fear, also drew his rusty blade, and with a single^ 
but a dreadful blow, cut off Longcastle's head ; the 
yeomen then ruslied on him with the utmost fury ; 
but Wallace stood like a post of iron and smote the 
foremost on the head and clove it down to the neck ; 
whereupon the other fled to tell the doleful news. But 
Wallpce, knowing that his escape would reveal his 
proceedings, pursued him, and gave him such a blow 
on the ribs, that all his lungs and entrails hui>g out of 
his body. He then seized their horses and their ar- 
mour, their swords and their purses, the lawful spoil 



iSiu WILLIAM WALLACE. 31 

of a well fought' field, mounted one of their horses, 
and rode on to Riclmrdlown. 

There Sir Richard Crawford rejoiced to see his 
nephew, and Sir Ronald soon joined the joyful com- 
pany with his cheeks bedewed with tears. Sir Ron- 
ald held Wallace by the hand and kissed him in the 
joyful extacy of his soul, '• Welcome, wetcome, my 
dear nephew," said he, '"' welcome home to me ! 
thanks be to God who has brought thee out of prison 
and has rescued thee from the cruel hands of thy 
mortal enemies." All his kinsfolks, his mother and 
friends, assemblcc! wiili y^shd hearts to see beloved 
Wallace, who v/as dead and is alive again. Robert 
Boyd and a great number of his dearest friends and 
companions from all parts convened to rejoice with 
them on the re-appearance of their promising Chief- 
tain. 

As soon as Wallace obtained a select band of faith- 
ful companions in v/ar, he proceeded in the month of 
July, to Maclilein iMuirjin order to wait an opportuni- 
ty to avenge the death of his father, brother, uncle, &c. 
The three sons of Sir Richard, Adam, Richard, Sim- 
eon, all brave and bold ; Robert Boyd, Cleland, and 
Edward Little accompanied Wallace as chiefs in this 
expeditioh. At Machline Muir they were informed 
that Fenwick was on his route to Ayre, conveying 
waggons loaded with provisions and rich spoils from 
Carlisle. The soul of Wallace was elevated to hear 
of this noble purvey, and he inwardly strained to 
catch the prize. To Loudoun, then, these seven no- 
ble warriors, with forty-three at their command, all 
clothed in bright armour and accoutered with glitter 



32 THE LIFE OF 

ing claymores, briskly rode, and lodged all night in 
Loudoun's braes, where they were informed by a ft^ue- 
hearted Scot near Loudoun, that the provision wag- 
gons of Fenwick were in Annadale, and that the ad- 
vanced guard liad passed on to Ayre. Wallace know- 
ing the course of their route, immediately ordered his 
worthy Scots to move at break of day to an advanta- 
geous ground, to lie in ambush for the approach of 
Fenwick, sending out two of their number to recon- 
noitre the plains. The Scots soon returned, and re- 
ported the coming of their enemies. All their hor- 
ses were turned loose, with a determination to con- 
quer or die ; and they fell on their knees to implore 
the God of power to protect them and the broken 
rights of Scotland. Prayers being ended, V/allace 
addressed his men to the following effect, " Here was 
my dear father and brother slain ! I shall be avenged 
on the head of the traitor that committed the felon 
deed," and commanded them to advance upon the 
hill. Fenwick saw them, and cried, " Yonder is 
Wallace ! I know him well : he lately broke our pri- 
son, and shall soon be captured again ; I shall not 
permit him to speak — his head will please our king 
better than gold, lands, or earthly things," and order- 
ed his servant to stop his carriage until he should 
clear the way of his enemies. Nine score he led in 
bright burnished harness, and fifty on horseback. — 
The Scots on foot, armed with good claymores, and 
caps of steel, met them on the hill ; and oh ! to see 
the fury of the tremendous combat ! steel clashing 
against steel— legs and arms, brains and entrails cov- 
ering all the plain, and the dying enemies lying wel- 
tering in their gore. Fenwick, never doubting 



SIR WILLIAM *VALL\ri:. 33 

victory, attempted to ride down tiie band of Scots by 
a furious onset ; but Wallace, first in fight, m^t them 
fell and keen, with his immovable company of youths, 
and transfixed the foremost of the enemy : then all 
swords were drawn on either side, and were wielded 
in dire array. The Englishmen surrounded the Scots 
on every side thinking; to bear them down by their 
horses and their numbers ; but the close little band 
of Scots stood impenetrable, and repulsed all the at- 
tacks of their enemies. When Fenwick then saw 
their unexpected repulse, and the fields died with the 
blood of his men, he advanced on a prancing; steed, 
clothed in bright armour ; wielding the dreadful 
spear, with dismal gloom and dashed into the thick- 
est of the fight in fury. Wallace s^aw the murderer 
of his parent and brother, and became as outrageous 
as a hungry lion ; he flew at him, and with a deadly 
blow sheared av/ay his thigh. 'Ere he was dead the 
enemy bore so close and keen, that poor Robert '^oyd 
was almost overpowered by the number of his foes ; 
but Wallace saw the unequal struggle of his noble 
companion, turned in again and rescued him from 
danger, and chased them through the plain. There 
Adam Wallace and Beaumont cut a Southeron Squire 
of great renown through the middle, and before night 
there was not a Southeron to dispute the field 
of battle. Three Scots Warriors fell in battle on that 
awful day ; one hundred Southerons lay dead around 
them and four score escaped bj'^ flight, leaving all 
their convoy a prey to the victorious Scots. 

The convoy consisted of gold, harness, horses, vic- 
tuals, wines, even ten score of harnessed horses, be- 
sides provender and other things. 



34 THE Lira OF 

The vanquished Southerons fled to Ayre, and told 
Lord Piercy of their dismal disaster ; how Wallace 
hanged their men on the trees of Clyde's wood, what 
niimhers were slain in battle, &c. which greatly raised 
the fears and dread of Piercy respecting the power and 
vengeance of Wallace, and induced him to make over" 
lures of peace. 



THE ENGLISH MAKE I^EACE WITH WALLACE. 

In order to have time to receive reinforcements, and 
effect his destruction, devised a plot to ensnare him 
during the peace. 

Wallace having won a glorious victory over the 
enemies of his country, and avenged the blood of his 
kindred on the heads of their murderers, retired to the 
green wood of Clyde with his adventurous compa- 
nions. 

Piercy in the mean time, proceeds to Glasgow, 
and summoned a council of the Lords tempoialto de- 
vise how they might ensnare Wallace by some deep 
stratagem ; for not one of their ten thousand men 
would go out against the mighty chieftain of Scotland, 
on account of the general rumour and dread of his 
name and power. In this secret council of war, Sir 
Aymer Vallance, the false and murderous knight of 
Bothwell, proposed a bloody plot to entrap and mas- 
sacre him, by employing his 'nearest relations to in- 
fluence him to a truco, by imposing upon his goodness 
and gentleness, especially through the persuasion ot 
Sir Ronald Crawford, his beloved uncle. They 
thrtatcned to confiscate all his lands, and to carry 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 35 

him to the prison of London ; which the good old 
knight repelled by urging: the impossibility of the un- 
dertaking, on the consideration of their having de- 
stroyed the kindred of Wallace. And when they 
could not prevail by menaces on Sir Ronald Craw- 
ford to use his influence to bring Wallace to conclude 
a peace, they promised him the Sheriffdom of Ayre. 
Alas! fair promises of honour and advancement over- 
came the good old knight, and he undertook the me- 
diation on the conditions proposed by Piercj\ 

Sir Ronald then proceeded to the woods of Clyde, 
and drew near Wallace as he dined and feasted on the 
dainties and luxuries of their spoils, sat down and 
shared their merriment. After dinner, Sir Ronald 
declared his errand, " Nephew, said he, take my ad- 
vice and counsel, make a truce for a season with the 
Southerons, otherwise all th}'' kindred will be slain.'' 
Wallace replied, " I shall make no peace with the 
oppressors of my country and the murderers of her 
sons." But Robert Boyd, to save the worthy knight, 
moved for peace; Cleland and Adam Wallace se 
conded the motion, and Wallace reluctantly agreed 
to proclaim peace, in hopes of future opportunities of 
liberating his country from the cruel yoke of their 
enemies, and they parted sadly on the plain. This 
happened in the month of August, 1296, in the 20th 
year of the age of Wallace. 



WALLACE KILLS THE BUCKLER PLAYER IN THE TOWN OF AVRK. 

Wallace could not rest contented at Crosbie with 
Sir Ronald Crawford, to see his country's wrongs 



3s THE LIFE OF 

unredressed. He longed to see the town of Ayre, 
and he selected fifteen men, and proceeded to it in 
disguise. At the gate they met an EngHsh Fencer, 
boasting of the weapon, with a buckler in his hand. 
Wallace stood to see the play, and while he remained 
there, the Fencer rhallonged him to fight ; " Scot, 
said he, darest thou try a stroke ?* ' '' Yes,'' said Wal- 
lace, '• smite 015, thy motion I defy," and immediate- 
ly swung his oreadful claymore at his head, and 
clove it down to his shoulders, and returned to his 
men without the least concern. The women halloo- 
ed, *•' our Fencer is dead ! our Fencer is slain !" and 
in a few moments fierce men in arms encompassed 
them ; eight score now att:ic'ved sixteen, but Wal- 
lace ever fearless and foremost, with one dreadful 
blow, shattered the brains of the one opposed to him 
through his helmet, swung his awful claymore through 
the body of another, and cleared a space to wield 
resistless weapons ; so did all his brave men, and 
great was the slaughter made among their assailants, 
ere reinforcements could bo sent from the castle. — 
Wallace saw their design to surprise him, ordered his 
men to cut through their enemy's ranks, and hewing 
heads and brains asunder, wheeled round his men, 
appeared in the rear, and cleared a way for escape 
from their merciless enemies. The great hero and 
his men mounted tiieir horses and galloped off to 
Longlandwood, leaving *29 Sontherons dead in the 
gates of the city. Three kinsmen of lord Piercy, 
who were clothed iu bright armour, paid the great 
debt of nature on that fatal day. Piercy then imme- 
diately accused Sir Ronald Crawford of a breach of 
faith, in a letter, because Wallace, he said, had not 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE ^7 

kept the peace. Wallace stayed seventeen days at 
Crosbie with his uncle, and promised to keep the peace, 
until the truce was ended. Sir Ronald showed him 
the letter of Piercy, and intreated him to remain qui- 
etly with him in his house ; but the soul of Wallace 
was fired with passion against the cruel tyranny of 
the Southerons, who possessed his country. 



WALLACE WINS THE PSFX OR FORT OF GARGUNNOCK. 

In September, the English Peers convened in Coun- 
cil at Glasgow, and good Sir Ronald Crawford Sher- 
iff of Ayre, behooved to be nraoncj: them. So he pro- 
j ceeded on his journey to Ghisgow, accompanied by 
' William Wallace his nephew, and three servants. — 
On their waj^, they met a convoy of three horsemen 
< and two footmen, with Piercy's baggage, who rob- 
' bed Sir i^onaWs servants upon the plain of all their 
I master's property; and Sir Rcmald himself never op- 
j posed then) for the sake of peace ; but Wallace saw 
j the foul deed, and could not forgive the injury. He 
I withdrew from the company of Sir Ronald, burning 
* with anger^ and vowing vengeance within his own 
I breast, to waylay the rapacious monsters, who had 
perpetrated the robbery. He overtook them near 
Cathcart, and attacked them, brandishing his great 
claymore. The first sweep he made with his sword, 
severed the head from the shoulders of the foreman ; 
three more of his companions quickly shared the fate 
of death by his claymore, and the fifth fled in great 
consternation. Wallace seized all their baggage and 
goods, and escaped into Lenox, leaving his friends to 



lament his absence, where he was courteously receiv 
ed by Malcom, the great Earl of Lenox. But 
Wallace could not remain idle while his native 
\and groaned under a foreign yoke ; grieved for their 
miserable condition, and resolved to raise an army to 
combat the enemies of his beloved country in the field. 
Stephen of Ireland, an exile of his country, entered 
into a league with Wallace ; so did Faudon, a man 
of dreadful size and aspect, of iniquitous eyes, never 
smiled, and was fearful to the sight, who delighted in 
blood and battery. With these and other sixty brave 
Scots warriors, he marched northward, and surprised 
the garrison on Gargunnock hill, in the dead of the 
night ; killed the watchmen, the captain and all the 
men in arms, only saving the women and children, 
and divided all the gold and provisions among his brave 
companions, wlio regaled themselves for four days in 
freat profusion, on the spoils of their enemy; but 
Wallace fought for Scotland, and for glory. In the 
fifth day after the reduction of this fortified store 
house, they pursued their march across the Teth and 
Em, in order to discover the motions, strength, or 
weakness of their enemies, and lodged in Methvin 
forest, where they could subsist upon hunting, and 
would not be compelled to fast and fight, as they had 
done in many places of resort. 



WALLACE EXTERS ST. JOHNSTOUN, SLATS THE CAPTAIN, AND 
WINS TUE CASTLE OF KINCLEVEN. 

He obtained admittance into the town, in disguise, 
¥rith seven men, in the following manner. Having 
•rrived ^t the jjate, and demanded permission to en- 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 39 

ter, he was refused admittance^ until the Provost was 
sent for to examine the strangers. When he saw 
Wallace, a tall strong man, he fixed his eyes upon 
him, suspected his huge appearance, and enquired 
whether they were all Scotsmen. Wallace readily 
answered, " we are not only all Scotsmen, but, as it 
is time of peace, there is.no cause to reftise us admis« 
sion.'' " This I grant," said the Provost, " and men 
of peace should always be well treated ; but pray, 
tell me your name, and from what part of the coun- 
try you are come?" Wallace answered," my name is 
William Malcom, we come from Ettrick Forest, in 
the South, to seek better employment in the North, 
and to see the country." The Provost then apolo- 
gised for his suspicious inquiries, adding that he 
meant no harm by his questioning of them, excusing 
himself by saying, " that so many reports had been 
circulated about one William Wallace, born in the 
West, who was slaying or destroying the English 
wherever he could find them, therefore, as he was a 
tall, strong man, it was necessary to know those whom 
they admitted into the town." Wallace professed to 
know nothing about William Wallace, and desired 
the Provost not to mention such a hated name ; and 
he was not only admitted into town, but had an 
mn provided for him and his men, until they should 
find employment, and were provided with every thing 
the place afforded. He often invited Englishmen to 
drink with him, on purpose to discover their number 
and strength of the place; his grgat business being to 
spy out their positions, in order to surprise them, or 
burn the town. 



4„ THE LIFE OF 

Wallace could not venture to set it in flames, on ac 
count of the difficulty of escape ; but then he disco- 
vered, that Sir James Butler, an aged knight, who 
kept the cas'ife of Kincleven, resided in town, with Sir 
John, his son, an under captain to Sir Gerard Her- 
on, then commandjr of the garrison; and was about 
to return to that strong hold, with a guard of 90 well 
armed horsemen, chosen men of valour. Wallace on 
hearing this report of Sir James's return to Kincleven 
castle, hastened off to Mithvinwood, blew his martial 
horn and all his intrepid warriors quickly assembled 
round him, all blooAiing in good health, and ready 
for action, at tiie command of their leader. 

He then marched his well armed tittle band from 
the woods in a valley along the banks of the sweet 
winding Tay, and, at a short distance from Kincleven 
lay in ambush among the bushes, and sent spies in 
diflerent directions, to reconnoiter their approach. — 
Some of them soon returned and brought the informa- 
tion, that four men on horse back had just passed, 
who appeared as the forerunners of the main body. 
The prudent Wallace commanded his men to remain 
still concealed, while he himself went to obtain more 
certain intelligence. At length he saw them coming 
in a dense column, four score and ten gallant soldiers, 
headed by Sir James Butler, and thanked Heaven, that 
they were not stronger, and prepared to attack them. 
The English could not conceive what they were, and 
were greatly surprised at such an appearance, and 
could not conjecture their intention, till they ap- 
proached near, when they perceived the hostile de- 
sign of Wallace and his warriors. The English 
brandished their dreadful spears, and rushed upon the 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 41 

Scots, in the hopes of tramphng- them under foot, or 
running them down with their horses. They were 
boldly and unexpectedly repulsed, and several ©f 
their men and horses were slain, Butler alighted 
from his horse and marshalled his men, in order to 
defend themselves against a furious enemy. A fierce 
and sanguinary contest ensued, and a few of the Scots 
fell under the strong arm of the English captain.— 
Wallace beheld this omen, became enraged, forced 
his way through the combfiting throng, attacked him, 
and hewed hh head in pieces, in presence of his brave 
warriors. Then wheeling around, laid many of the 
English on the ground in all directions. Stephen of 
Ireland and his invincible Scots, also performed their 
dutj^ and stretched three score of the English on the 
ground ; the rest tied in confusion to the castle of 
Kincleven. 

The few men who were left as a garrion to defend 
the place, opened the gate to receive their flying com- 
panions ; but Wallace and his men following them so 
close, entered the same gate with them, seized the 
castle, shut the gate, drew the bridge, and permhted 
no one to go out or come in, except according to his 
pleasure. The women and children he saved, re- 
tained them for some days, and then permitted them 
to depart, with such effects as they chose, to carry 
along with them. Meantime his men were employed, 
during five knights, in conveying all the provisions 
and necessaries which they found in the castle, to the 
Short-Wood shaws. He then committed the castle 
to the flames, abandoned it, and wisely retired to the 
wood for shelter in case of future danger. Lady But- 
ler hastened to Perth, and informed Sir John, hex wn 
D2 



« THE LIFE OF 

of ihe fate ol bis father, and their misfortunes. Sir 
John was stiini,^ to the heart with grief, and fired with 
indignation, commanded all the men in Perth and its 
vicinity, to arms, and repaired to the Short- Wood 
shaws, in search of the Scots, under the command of 
William Wallace, of dreaded name and valour. 



THE BATTLE OF THE SliORT-WOOD SHAWS. 

As soon as the Southerons in St. Johnstown or 
Perth, heard of the fatal disaster and fall of their gar- 
rison at Kincleven, the vowed vengeance on the head 
of the Scots. Sir John Butler, the son of Sir James 
Butler of Kincleven, whom Wallace had slain, a val- 
iant chief, was sent with a thousand men of war, to the 
Short-Wood shaw, to avenge the blood of his father 
and the other brave men, who died in that awful af- 
fray. Butler was impassioned with double rage and 
spirit of revenge, and poured his men into the shaw 
in multitudes; archers, spearmen, and swordsmen, 
with dreadful din of war, resolyed to exterminate the 
little band of Scots, who lodged in the wood. But 
Wallace heard them npproach undismayed, drew up 
his men in form of battle best calculated to defend 
themselveSjSofewin numbers,againsta thousandstrong. 
The Southerons advanced in awful front, supposing to 
cut the Scots to pieces in a few minutes, and a tre- 
mendous combat began, the like of it never was seen 
on the pleasant green banks of the Tay, where such 
deeds were done, such feats performed, and such glo- 
ries won, that no human pen can represent, in verse 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 43 

3r in prose, arms meeting arms, swords clashing 
against swords, spears crashing against long'' clay- 
mores, heads and limbs flying asunder, and brains 
and entrails flowing forth in the presence of the in- 
vincible Scots. The Scots were formed into a dense 
ring, and presented a. circular front, like a wall of 
iron, that nothing could penetrate, nor could a suffi- 
cient number of their weaker bodied foes engage to 
overpower them. As for Wallace, he laboured hard, 
and often pierced through their ranks, and laid many 
dead upon the ground, dealing blows of destruction 
among his enemies. He carefully sought for young 
Buder through and through the ranks, and at last he 
eyed him breathing vengeance against his enemy, de- 
fended underneath a bowing tree. Intent he muster- 
ed all his strength, fiercely struck at Buder, cut down 
the branch and felled the champion dead on the spot. 
Loran of Cowrie saw his companion fall dead, under 
the mighty claymore of Wallace, was enraged and 
I flew at him in a tremendous fury : but Wallace par- 
I ried off the dreadful blow, and with a sweep of his 
I claymore stretched theyounker dead at his feet. Then 
\ the valiant Scots fought nobly all that day, and repel- 
led their enemies at every onset, till they in shame 
j withdrew, and left the Scots in possession of the 
I field of battle. Astonishing to tell, that sixty Scots 
j should defeat a thousand Southerons, and only leave 
• seven of their number dead on the field, while full six 
j score of their opponents la^' dead around them. — 
\ Wallace having won the battle of the Short-Wood 
' shaws, fearing that the enemy would receive reinforce- 
j ments, and attack them, wearied with the long and 
desperate contest, withdrew into Methvin wood, and 
thence retired to Elcho-Park. 



44 THE LIFB OF 

WALLACE BETRATED BT HIS LEMAX IN ST, JOHNSTOWX, 
AXD ESCAPF.?. 

While his invincible warriors Remained in Elcho- 
Park, Wallace was moved with a desire to revisit his 
sweetheart in the town of Perth ; and consequently 
discruised himself in a friars gown, and proceeded to. 
see the facinating dame ! Having spent the night jnt 
pleasure, he made a promise to come another day 
and returned to his men. 

In the mean time, the Southerons having obtamea 
information of Wallace's dalliance with the maid, 
bribed her with gold to betray him into their hands' 
whrn he returned. According to his promise he 
returned on the day appointed, incontinent into her 
chamber of death and danger. Having finished their 
dalliance, the thought of losing such a trusty, kind and 
honourable love, struck her with remorse, and she 
immediately disclosed the nefarious plot to him with 
weeping, and prayed him to make his escape. He 
pardoned all her crime with a parting kiss, wiped the 
tears olT her ffice and forgot the fault of weakness and 
necessity. He clothed himself in her garments and 
makes for the gate with all haste and speed. He 
passed all the watch unsuspected excepting two, who 
wondered at the amazing size and manly appearance, 
pursued him until they were out of the reach ol 
the cry of their companions, when V/allace in his 
Leman's gown, turned round and smote them dead 
at his feet, hastened to his men, musing on the dan- 
ger of trusting womankind. He immediately placed 
his sentinels with orders not to leave their post that 
night on pain of death ; for he well knew that his dis^ 
appointed enemies would pursue him. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 4S 

THE BATTLE OF ELCHO-PARK, AND OK TAT. 

Kills Faudon ; sees his apparation in a dream — pro- 
ceeds to Lochmaben—wins the castle of Crawford, 
and slays the captain. 

The Southerons being enraged at the escape of 
\ Wallace, pursued him with six hundred men, well 
armed with harness, sword and spear, to beset him in 
his lurking place in the wood of Elcho. Before them, 
they sent a famous blood-hound of wondrous scent, 
to trace the footsteps and hold of Wallace in the 
, woods. Tliree hundred surrounded the woods, un- 
ider their captain, Sir G_erard Heron, and three liun- 
|dred scoured it by the guidance of their blood-hound, 
(under th^ command of (Sir James) Butler, who land- 
'ed on Wallace and his brave companions, standing in 
larms, not one to seven of their enemies. 
' It was impossible to flee from his surrounding foes. 
They resolved to conquer or die on the field of battle. 
\ The mighty chief unsheathed his conquering clay- 
I more, besought the aid of Hekven, and gave the dread 
command. Fierce he met his invading foes, and 
dealt his fatal blows like lightning. The tempered 
edges clashed with horrid din on coats of steel, 
whence fiery sparkles flashed to brighten the flame of 
I war : but the massy armour's and the defensive shields 
, yielded to the nervous arm of matchless Wallace, 
I who, like some awful torrent from a lofty hill, filled 
] all the valley with the wreck of war. He hewed a 
J lane through the martial press, and slew all who dared 
oppose him. Forty of the enemy lay upon the ground 
for their temerity ; and fifteen of the brave and vali- 
ant Scots yielded up their life in defence of their coun- 



46 THE LIFE OF 

try. The martial hero cut his way through his ene- 
mies, rescued all his surviving companions, and es- 
caped towards Toy, in hopes to find a pass, ere his 
pursuing enemies could overtake them. But alas ! no 
pass could be found, and an infuriated enemy pressed 
hard upon their rear. " We shall rather die upon 
the plain, said Wallace, than sink a single drop of 
Scottish blood in the relentless flood, without revenge : 
let us stand and be avenged even in our death." 

Having heard the breathings of their chieftain, they 
stood with renewed courage in their own defence. 
Butler advanced in dread array, bathed in blood, and 
panting for revenge, and rushed upon the Scots with' 
all his warlike host. Deaths were soon exchanged on 
every side. — The youthful captain of the noble Scots 
exerted all his martial fire, run through their ranks 
and mowed them down like grass, while he himself 
stood invulnerable in a coat of mail, and raging in his 
unequal strength. But as he strewed the field with 
numerous bodies of his enemies, he saw with grief and 
pain, many of his few companions lying bleeding on 
the ground, with their shields and good claymores 
dyed with the blood of their assailants. 

Wallace saw no way of relief except in the death 
of Butler, their captain, whom he keenly sought from 
place to place through all the throng, and Butler as 
carefully declined to meet his eye ; beneath an aged 
oak, amidst strong guards he avoided the fatal blow 
of his claymore. Stephen of Ireland, and faithful 
Kierly stuod firm with Wallace, and dealt their fatal 
blows on the heads of their surrounding enemies. 

Sixty more of the Ent^hsh cr Southerons lay dead 
or weltering in their gorf', on the green banks of Tay ; 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE: 47 

and nine more of the intrepid Scots resigned their 
breath that day in defence of their liberty. Sixteen 
now survived to accompany their chief and to flee 
for their lives, after a day of laborious contests.— 
They escaped in the night from between two con- 
fused parties of Butler's men, unobserved in their flight, 
and fled to the craggy woods of Dupline. 
I As they eluded the siglit of their enemies, tlie 
Southerons sent their blood-hound after them, who 
quickly traced them out, and brought them in each 
other's view. 

The enemies pursued on fleet coursers ; but the 
Scots depended on their nimble feet. Over two miles 
I of rising ground they had to pass, before they could 
( arrive at any place of strength, or elude the eyes of 
I their numerous enemies. But alas ! ill-fated Faudon 
tired, and would not proceed further, even on the per- 
I suasion and help of his faithful companions. Wal- 
I lace fearing his becoming a traitor as he felj into the 
j hands of his enemies, urged him with words of love, 
1 but all in vain. The chieftain became indignant at 
' the designing treachery, reluctantly drew his claj^- 
more, and slew the intending traitor. The blood of 
; Faudon stopped the hound and saved the lives of the 
sixteen survivors. Having despatched the traitor, 
I the rest mounted the rocks like springing deers. 
I The Southerons having been guided by the slow 
I hound, come to the body of Foudon, and supposed 
I that the Scots had been killing each other. 
1 While they crowded about the dead body of Fau- 
don, Kierley and Stephen of Ireland, mingled among 
them in the night. Kierley drew lais dagger and 
thrust it into the bosom of Gerard Heron, as he stoop- 
ed to see the body of Faudon, directing it upwards 



48 THE LIFE 01- 

beneath his armour to his vitals, and laid him dead 
beside the departed traitor. They cried, " Treason, 
treason !" in doleful shrieks, being convinced that the 
audacious claymore of Wallace had pierced the heart 
of their chieftain. The two brave Scots escaped im- 
pending doom, in the midst of the confusion and gloom 
of the night. 

Butler changed colour with grief and rage when he 
saw Sir Gerard Heron gasping on the ground. He 
immediately sent some of his men to inter the slain, 
some to search the woods, some to scour the plain, 
and others remained with him to guard the passes till 
the return of day. Wallace, in the mean time, pas- 
sed through the woods, in grief about the absence of 
his two brave men, Stephen and Kierly, and ai rived 
safely at Gaskhall, where pressing hunger rendered 
them bold enough to take two good sheep from a 
neigbouring fold, and to roast them for supper. There 
Wallace, in a dream, thought he heard the sound of 
the loudest horn, and sent all his men, one by one, to 
learn who should blow the horn of war. None re- 
turned to their chieftain, and, as the noise grew louder 
and louder, his soul v/as racked with grief and pain 
about the absence of his companions. The dreadful 
sound increased in louder roar, and made the warrior 
tremble. He snatched his daundess claymore, col- 
lected in his strengdi and moved to the gate, where 
the frightful appearn-nce of Faudon stood, holding his 
bleeding head in his hand. Wallace drew a cross 
and stood, when at that moment, Faudon threw his 
bloody head at Wallace, who seized it by the hair 
and returned it to its owner. He awoke and flew 
om at the window, and fl^^d along the river. Then 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 49 

Wallace had to wander alone, bewildered in his 
thoughts and overwhelmed with grief and black ideas 
revolving in his mind, all the gloomy night. On the 
return of day Butler awoke, and proceeded to the 
plains, and there saw poor Wallace laying, sighing 
and moaning for his companions, demanded his buis- 
ness there, with contracted brow, and spurred his 
fiery horse. Wallace, unmoved, sustained the mighty 
shock of the furious warrior, and aimed a fatal blow, 
and cut his enemy to the ground ; then he instantly 
seized and mounted his horse, and scampered along 
the plains, to evade unequal combat. 

A soldier saw his leader fall, and launched his 
whistling spear at the flying chief, but missed his mark. 
Yet the enemy intercepted his flight and surrounded 
the unfortunate chief. Brave Wallace stood, collect- 
ed all his soul, saw them raging and panting for his 
blood, drew his dreadful claymore, dealt fate around, 
swept his bloody way, stretched three warriors dead, 
and left their chieftain dying on the ground. But the 
enemy poured in upon him, successive troops, con- 
densed into a crowd, and bend all their united for^o 
to bear the chieftain down. The invincible Wallace 
I retires, intrepid and serene, and Parthian like, wound- 
j ing as he retreated, unsouling twenty of his foes 
I as he withdrew, to adorn tlie scene of war. 
I Our glorious warrior, now weak and faint, pursued 
his gloomy way in dreary wilds, through fens, bogs, 
< and bushes, towards the Forth. But alas ! his weary 
steed sunk to the ground and died upon the plain, and 
Wallace was compelled to walk on foot without one 
glimpse of day. He stood on the gloomy banks of 
tbQ surging flood alone, loosed his massyj armour, 
E 



so .THE LIFE OF 

plunged into it, crossed the stream, and lodged in a 
thicket, near a widow's house, the following night. 

But ere he slept, he despatched two maids, his 
hostess' two daugiiters to Gaskiiall to search for his 
beloved companions, and find out their fates. 

Next morning, as Wallace repugned the tempta- 
tions of a priest to ensnare him witli submission to the 
power of Edward, Stephen and Kierly arrived in 
great haste, and rehearsed to tlseir chief all the diffi- 
culties whicli they experienced during his absence. 
Tears of Joy bedewed the cheeks of those warriors, 
while they mutually told their adventures and dan- 
gers, in the midst of their cruel enemies. 

But as Wallace was about to leave that place, the 
widow came and oflered her two sons as volunteers 
in his service, that they might learn, under his guar- 
dianship, the art of war. The mighty chief, with his 
faithful band of warriors, set out, adorned with horse 
and arms, for the heath of Dunduff, wliere brave Sir 
John Graham held possession under the tyranny of 
Edward. He had a bold young son, who was en- 
dowed by nature and education to excel in war. The 
g6od old knight caused his gallant son to swear al- 
legiance to Wallace on his drawn claymore, and to 
follow him wlierever glory and virtue should lead 
him. Three days Wallace remained in the house of 
Sir John Graham, and on tlie fourth he set out with his 
gallant young pupils to teaeh them the glorious art 
of war. He bent his course to his nephew's at Kil- 
bank, that he might collect some warriors, before he 
should again venture in the field against a powerful 
and numerous enemy The noble night of Kilbank, 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 51 

his nephew, received every soul as a welcome guest, 
and enjoyed the love of all. 

Meanwhile, the news of the famous deeds of Wal- 
lace, and his increasing j;lcry, reached the ears of 
Piercy, who again attempted to corrupt Sir Ronald 
Crawford by promises, or to force him by menaces, 
to influence Wallace to a submission to the govern- 
ment of the usurper ; but the mighty chief employed 
his active thoughts in preparing for war. He dis- 
patched a messenger to Clair and Boyd, to call them 
to arms in defence of their liberties and their laws.- 

Thenews quickly spread, and all his friends, inured 
to war and bred to feats of arms, convened in gather- 
ing swarms arounil their chieftain. Wallace was 
transported with joy and all his cares decreased among 
such a company of faithful friends, who only wailed 
to receive his commands. 

Just as the chief was about to enter on his cam- 
paign or expedition against the enemies of his coun- 
try, he was controlled by the chains of love, that re- 
tarded the brilliant course of his warfare. The 
charming fair lived in Lanerk, very near his native 
place, Ellerslie, where she was admired by all for the 
matchless beauties which adorned her person. Wai 
lace beheld the pleasant flame, and can we refuse our 
Hero the pleasures of nature and desire of his soul 
A great struggle occupied the mind of Wallace ; the 
love of the fair and the love of his country rolling in 
his bosom, and he could no longer conceal the pangs 
of this conflict, " Wl^.at ! shall I give up my heart to, 
love and destroy all my future schemes of war ; shall 
I thus lose myself in pleasant dreams, while Scotland 
claims my bosom I No, I stifle this inglorious flame, 



52 THE LIFE OF 

and erase her image from my remembrance ; rise glo 
ry rise ! assume thy wonted charms, carry me into 
thine arms, and drown each thought in the loud 
alarms of war ; my duty and my country call me hence, 
adieu, fair Marion, adieu." As the love-struck hero 
moved away, a maid arrived from his lovely fair with 
an invitation to visit her habitation. " Marion sends 
her compliments and would be glad to behold the 
bravest son of his country." The chief was amazed 
and cried impatiently, "I go," and proceeded through 
a secret back path to her house. There the lovely 
pair regaled themselves with a sweet converse, and 
concluded the match. t 



•' But liis duty called him to the field, 
And love to conquest now must yield, 

♦' sweet maid," he cried, " again " I'll come to thee, 
When the loud trumpet sounds to victory." 



He urged his course to Lochmaben, where his en- 
emy, full grown in arrogance and glorying in pow- 
er, Clifford, the inhuman youth commanded, and 
vaunted in his inhuman conquests over the land. — 
Wallace had scarce reached the devoted town when 
Cliflbrd began to brand the Scots with contumelies. 
He pursued the haughty lord, pierced his heart with 
his awful claymore, and left the town to warn his 
faithful friends of the expected enemy ; who immedi- 
ately on the death of tlieir chief pursued them. The 
enemy appeared in burnished arms, and shot their 
arrows with certain speed and aim and wounded John 
Blair, his worthy chaplain. Vv allace saw him bleed 
and turned in awful rage to meet his foes. Having or- 
dered an attack, his little band rushed upon their ene- 



SIR WILUAM WALLACE. S3 

niies and received their adverse shock ; none of ei- 
ther side dare seek a base retreat, until the English ar- 
my was thinned with numerous slain, and the whole 
field covered with multitudes of dead. Yet still their 
new troops advanced in thickening crowds, which 
covered the fields around with the clangor of war. — 
Ivloreland too, the flower of arms, moved to the field 
with lightning in his eyes ; his armour yielded bla- 
zing splendour, his plume nodded from a distance, 
and increased tlie tide of war ; martial terror gloom- 
ed upon his brows as his boiling rage glowed in his 
heaving bosom. 

Keen in arms the mighty chief meditated the ruin 
of the Scots, and his very appearance seemed to raise 
the hopes of the Southeron's, as it swelled the tide of 
war. • Tiie dauntless Scots could not even attempt to 
flee, they were closely wedged on every side, and ful- 
ly resolved to win or die. Both sides assaulted, and 
vied each odier in tremendous feats, thickened the 
combat, and thinned the field. Wallace rode thun- 
dering through the tempest of tiie conflict, distinguish- 
ed by the orby shield, and sought the dreaded More- 
land. His glancing eye caught the raging chief, and 
at him aimed the ponderous blade, which cut his neck 
in two, and severed his head from his body. Wal- 
lace then seized his horse and wheeled around to re- 
vive the thunder of the war. The chieftain of the 
Scots, as if inspired by heaven with more than hu- 
man might, inclined the scale of light to victory with 
his own arm. Heaps on heiips expired on every side, 
and all the verdant grass v;as dyed with human gore. 
At last the Souiherons lost their courage on the death 
of their champioji, and fled to the castle, where fierce 



54 THE LIFE OF 

Gravestock reigned in abandoned pride and ease, de- 
riding: all their terrors and scorning all their fears. 

As soon as fierce Gravestock perceived the defeat 
and death of Moreland, he commanded all his men in 
arms to issue forth to the field, and meet the approach- 
ing Scots. He again revived the tempest of war ; 
while Wallace had withdrawn from the bloody scene 
of victory to rest his wearied limbs. But he soon re- 
turned to his brave companions, and determined the 
fate of the day. The Soulherons saw him rise, like 
a lion in his full strength casting an iron glare, and 
cursed the fearful sight. " Oh, don% they cried, 
anticipate our doom ! return, return ; don't brave 
the impending fate ! yonder he comes ; behold the 
godlike chieftain, whose mighty arm alone sweeps 
the field !" " Ha ! ye dastards ! cried Gravestock, 
their intrepid General, with a frown of rage, and spur- 
red his horse, his strength owes its being to your fears 
alone." 

Wallace's horse sunk under him, and his rider be- 
:ng overcome by fatigue, could not tempt the rising 
tumult of the roaring war, which rolled along in fierce 
encounters. Meantime, immortal Graham, as if des- 
patched by Heaven, advanced with a brave retinue 
of warriors. He joined the battle and raised the 
clamorous shouts and cries through all the field. Gra- 
ham rushed through the war and swept the standing 
field, as if some fierce tide, bounding in the thickest, 
of the fight. Wallace, on foot, cuts his bloody path, 
and braving death, he stems the flood of war ; he 
fights in wearied ardour, besmeared with blood and 
dust, and reaped the field, where dread and fate ap- 
peared to mow his intrepid followers. Thus all hi5 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE: 55 

brave companions urged the course and repulsed their 
foes in foul disgrace. 

The champion from the front of battle retreats, and 
Wallace urged the chase, as if he gained new strength, 
to cut their chieftain down ; but swift Graham, quick 
as lightning, vieti with his noble leader, and swept 
the rabble down. " Away, cried Wallace, why dis- 
grace thy sword ? fly at yon fleeing chief and reap 
a nobler lleld :" and as the youthful heroes shot along 
the ranks in rapid haste, the new fired Graham sought 
Gravestock retreating oft' tlie field. The mighty Scot 
raised his claymore, as TiL^htning in the air, and clave 
nis monstrous head. No force could imoede its de- 
scena'ing motion, nor prevent tne yawning chasm 
that efiused his gushing soul. 

Wallace, meanwhile, strewed the bloody ground 
with corses of the dead, and finished the burning 
chase. 

The brave warriors now meet, and unite with kind 
intercourse of souls, each pleased with the view of his 
victorious friends panting after a well fought day. — 
All t!ie victors headed by Wallace, sat down at night 
to meditate new toils of war, among the heaps of slain ; 
and ere morning directed their march to Lochmaben, 
to explore the town in the shades of night. 

As they approached the gate, they found the keep- 
er watching alone, and aimed a random blow, and 
laM him dead in silence. His following band ad- 
vanced in haste, and surprised the house, whence 
clamour, shrieks and cries issued to rend* the skies : 
naught but groans of wretches resounded through all 
the apartments of the fortress, where mirth and pride 
had reigned. 



66 THE LIFE OF 

The victors, now wearied with toils of war, gladly 
reclined to satiate the calls of nature, on the spoils of 
their opulent enemies. The sated warriors left the 
humble town, and bent their rapid course toward the 
flowing Clyde, to repose in sleep their exhausted 
limbs. The ^od of sleep soon embraced ti.em in the 
retired vale, and eased tlicm of the bloody toils of 
da5\ The restless warrior dreamed of an unsubdued 
fortress where the enemies triumphed, and ere it wns 
day they were awoke with the sound of the martial 
horn of their ciiieftain : all determined to level its 
proud walls with the ground, before they could return 
to rest. 

Wallace, in front, advanced with eager speed to- 
wards the devoted town, where their enemies wal- 
lowed in luxuries and raised their drunken mirth. — 
The enraged chief gave the dreadful order to assail 
the gates, to guard the passes and invest the fortress 
with united force. The eager warriors combined 
their powers and ruslied upon their foes. Wallace 
sought the house, where the sottish captain sat, and 
hurled him headlong to the shades of night. His 
men, witii vieing rnge, mingled their blood with their 
feast, and their bodies lay in grinning death, and wel 
tering in their gore, 

Graham, meantime, scaled the piles of the fort, 
plied his hands to fling the brands, in order to con- 
sume the lofty roof, which soon descended in volumes 
of fire to scorch their trembling foes. Ah ! wh;it 
shrieks within and yellings of despair, blended with 
the horror, to consummate tlie fiery death. The roof, 
turret, and all around, tumbiod M the ground like a 
burst of thunder, and crushed the wreiris?3 underneatli 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. S7 

its burning columns. Thus the great fortress appear- 
ed, on the dawn of day, in heaps of smoking ruins, 
and half burnt bodies of their fallen enemies, lying in 
piles of ashes ! ! ! 



WALLACE RETURNS TO LANERK, 

Marries Marion — removes her from the seat of war 
goes to fight against Hesilrig and Thorn. 

The conquering hero, having swept the country 
of his numerous foes in many briUiant victories, re- 
turned in guise to Lanerk, to espouse his loving Ma- 
rion, and to refresh his sense with the social plea- 
I sures of connubial nature. Moved with the soft flame 
I of love to see his lovely Marion, he forgot the dan- 
( ger of his enemies' being posted in the bosom of liis 
country, being resolved to wed his intended spouse 
and consummate the future days of his life with the 
'joys of hymen. 

The happy pair did not long enjoy the connubial 
\ blessings of peace and sweet intercourse together in 
I Lanerk; for wiiile he remained with his Marion dur- 
ing the months of April, May and June, the Souther- 
Ions gained ground, and re-occupied all the principal 
'towns and forts of the country, and the martial soul of 
I Wallace was roused, and he could no longer restrain 
jthe fire that burned in his heart, to rescue his country 
from the tyranny of a cruel usurper. Love and hon- 
our alternately ruled his passions for some time, and 
ilhe anxiously staid with Marion ; but the love of his 



S^ iME LIF£ OF 

country and of glorj^, at length overcame all the Jove 
of his beloved consort, and he again sets out to vindi- 
cate the rights of Scotland. 

But, oh ! what a parting was realized on that so- 
lemn occasion ! can any one depict the strength and 
purity of tlie love of those two benign bosoms, when 
the youthful Wallace parted with his Marion, his lov- 
ing, beautiful, young spouse, to head the Scottish war- 
riors ! can prose or poesy paint the motions of their 
united souls on that day, when this faithful pair ex- 
pressed their grief to each other, and soothed the pas- 
sions of each other's breast ; he desirous to carry his 
wife beyond tiie hazards of war, she imploring him to 
take her along with him, mutually wishing security 
from the cruel rapine and plunderof their oppressors, 
who raged in lusts and wallowed in spoils. 

" Will you go, said Marion, will you go where tlie 
alarms of war call you, and where battles rage, and 
leave me exposed to every wilful enemy? See Hesil- 
rig appears in lustful rage, he will deride my passions 
and insult my fears ; he shows no mercy nor quarter: 
I shall sink beneath the blow of this cruel warrior. 
The wife of Wallace cannot be long concealed, and 
I shall die in your absence. Oh ! take me with you ! 
whatever shoul happen to us, I am willing to live or 
die with thee." 

" Cease, cease, to grieve, said Wallace. Oh, Ma- 
rion ! If just Heaven has ordained my safe return, I 
shall see you again, and if He has otherwise deter 
mined, He will protect you, or carry you into the 
mansions of bliss." 

A long and moving colloquy ensued between them 
and continued with equal conflict until the break of 
day, when yomi^^ Wuliace went out to the fields. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 59 

implored the aid of Heaven on his arduous under- 
taking, blew his martial horn, and assembled his fol- 
lowers to go out to the fields of victory. 

The English soon perceived their danger, and ob- 
served the progress of the war, and prepared for fierce 
encounter under the command of Hesilrig and Thorn. 
One thousand strong ; all savage warriors, armed with 
swords, spears, and javelins, made head against the 
Scots, and a sanguinary combat ensued. Stern ven- 
geance frov/ned on the brows of the warriors, and 
fired by different passions, the two nations joined in 
battle. The guilty invaders armed with pride and 
ambition, the patriotic Scots boldly attempted to 
clieck the tyrant's reign, and maintain their freedom. 
All the plains were soon covered with arms, and the 
countless arrows flew from well stored quivers, until 
the Scots being overpowered with numbers, withdrew 
in the silence of the night, to Cartline Craigs, in or- 
der to Save his little band of heroes, and to wait im- 
patiently the- rise of day. 

In that solemn night, the cruel Hesilrig having heard 
that Marion had concealed Wallace, proceeds to the 
residence of innocent Marion, and demands of her, 
information of the lurking place of Wallace, her be- 
loved husband. He threatened her with instant death 
[ if she did not reveal his secret abode. The trembling 
j young Marion shed tears of fear and sorrow in vain, 
! while his huge sword waved around her head, and 
I menaced her immediate destruction. The cowardly 
I Hesilrig disregarded her prayers and her tears, ab- 
I jured all ties of honour, and relentlessly plunged his 
ruthless sword into her heaving bosom ! ! ! Alas ! Ma- 
I rion sunk beneath the traitor's sword, the sword of a 



$0 THE LIFE OF 

disappointed lover, and the pale hand of deatn sealed 
up her closing eyes ! Alas for Marion ! stretched on 
the cold ground, and her offspring doomed never to see 
the light of day ! Alas for pregnant Marion, cruelly 
murdered by the enemy of her husband and her coun- 
try, and her promising race concealed forever in 
nature's womb. 

Quick as on the wings of the wind, the unhappy 
news reached the ears of loving Wallace, and chil- 
led his heart with the dismal catastrophe of his dear 
Marion. All his warriors sympathized in tears of 
sorrow ; Graham with all his mourning band could 
not withstand the shock ; but Wallace beheld their 
tears and bade them cease to weep for departed Ma- 
rion. " Why all this waste of ^ears, cried the noble 
Wallace; will they recall her fleeting shade? Let 
tears give way to nobler toils of war, and swords per- 
form in strictest justice, what words would express. 
Hear me, O brave Graham, thou companion of my 
arms ! to thee I swear, that this claymore shall not be 
sheathed till I revenge the death of my dearest, 
dearest Marion ! Heavens ! what toils of death and 
war, rivers of floating blood, and hills of slain, shall 
mark our course; and for her sake ten thousand shall 
welter on the plain.'' 

While thus the chieftain spoke, his melancholy 
troops gazed on him to catch the sound of war with 
pleasing anguish. Fierce vengeance steeled every 
warrior's heart, martial fire bent every bow, and pas- 
sion nerved every hand of those true hearted Scots. 
*' Come, says the chief, to yonder Lanerk let us 
wing our course in the silence of the nig^ht, and let us 
surprise those murderers in their sleep, that V€n- 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 6l 

geance may overtake them : justice requires blood 
for biood." 

They obeyed his command and marched to Lan- 
erk, and ere it was day, entered the devoted town, 
where the English lay in perfect security. Wallace 
divided his men into two hostile bands and pointed 
out the places of attack ; the one to storm the castle 
where Hesilrig- lay, and the other under the command 
of Sir John Graham to burn down their dwelhngs. 
To Hesilrig's chamber Wallace winged his intended 
course. He threw a liuge stone on the gate and broke 
the bars, bolts, and brazen hinges, entered Hesilrig's 
apartment, surprised him in the dead of night, and 
hurled him headlong to the shades of death, as lie 
stood trembling, and saw the injured man advance, 
holding his huge claymore in his hand, and uttering 
w.ords of inexorible vengeance. " And thou thought- 
est, traitor, the here hero cried, that I would be re- 
miss, or unable to resent the cruel injury done to me 
and the Scots, in spilling the precious blood of Mari- 
on." As thus he spoke he raised his claymore and 
swung the ponderous steel on his head. The felon 
sunk to the ground and breathed out his guilty soul. 

Meantime, Sir John Graham commands his men 
to throw fire-brands on the roofs and guard the pas- 
ses. Thorn saw, in dire amazement, the ruinous 
blaze that was to embrace him and his followers in 
the arms of death, but could not avert his doom. 

On the dawn of morning, the victors ^awthe heaps 
of slain, and many half-burned bodies of their ene- 
m||s, in piles of smoking ruins. " Enough, cried Sir 
John Graham, enough, Wallace ; Albion's ensign is 
freed, and flitters in the wind ; Scotia is redeeraetj 
F 



62 p THE LIFE OF 

with heaps of dead.'' But the hero naa no sooner 
won one victory, than he bent his way to some more 
glorious field, reserved for the plains of Biggar. 



THE BATTLE OF BIGGAR. 



Wallace had no sooner avenged the blood of deai 
Marion on the head of Hesilrig and his guiltj^ crew 
in unhappy Lanerk, the death place of the fair and 
beautiful Marion Braid foot, heiress of Lammington, 
than he quickly leads liis victorious bands to the plains 
of Biggar. There he saw, while his men lay encamp- 
ed on a rising ground, his numerous enemies stretch- 
ed out in wide array along the plain, and his heart 
biggened with the glorious sight, as if some scene of 
victory had presented to his view. 

In the morning watch, every soldier roused with 
the sound of the clarion eagerly seized his ready 
shield, drew his broad claymore, and strode along 
the field in a dense column, to meet their assailants. 
From right to left, the wings extended, condensed, 
and closed to the thickening combat. 

As the soldiers thus were gathered into martial 
clouds, with hearts beating high, waiting the least 
command, and death stood lingering in their lifted 
hands ; Wallace viewed with a skilful eye the weak- 
nesSv of his enemies, saw with joy the impassioned as- 
pect of his men, and thus addresed them : 

" To day, my friends, let us fight the battle of our 
country ; let us hazard unequal fight, in the cause of 
our wives and our children ; let our claymores be 
deeply drenched in the blood of the enemies and op- 



SIR WIIXIAM WALLACE. G3 

pressors of Scotlandj and then our toils will soon be 
over in glorious victory. Around our heads, guar- 
dian angels stand to guide the javelins in our hands, 
and to direct our claymores to Edward's heart. Let 
glorious liberty inspire our souls ; let injuries steel 
our hearts ; and let cruel Edward's tent be our mark 
in this impending combat." 

As thus he spoke, the love of glory fired every 
heart, and the love of liberty armed every soul, and 
quick as lightninfc the Scots legion descended the 
brow of the hill to attack their foes marshalled on the 
plain. The enemies saw them descend in torrents, 
rushing in massy steel to meet them, in closest ranks, 
and were surprised at the swiftness of the descend- 
ing war. 

The Scots received the first onset of their numer- 
ous enemies in the form of a circle, which seemed as 
impenetrable as a wall of iron, and then urged their 
way towards the monarches tent. There was tlie 
dreadful conflict of warriors, there a thousand lay 
bleeding on the plain ; swords, shields, claymores 
gnd spears, lay mingled in confusion, and the field 
was reaped by the Scots on that awful day. Tlie 
orby shield of Wallace was distinguished from a dis 
tance to tempest the field, and floated in the midst of 
the throng. Imperious death attended his claymore, 
and certain doom was designed for the usurper. But 
fierce Kent employed his dreadful spear in anotlier 
part of the contest, and destroyed as many of the 
Scots. On his bounding courser he bore away his 
lord over heaps of dead, and the little band of Scots 
could scarcely withstand the mighty sweep of the 
hand of that invader. 



S4 THE LIFE OF 

Wallace saw his men retreat on his approach, hast- 
ed in fury to the fainting squadron, heaved his orby 
shield, resolved in arms to meet the dreaded enemy, 
and spread destruction all around him, in equal con- 
flict. The battle lasj^ed long, and the fortune of the 
day hung long uncertain in furious suspense. But at 
length, Wallace mustering all his strength, forced his 
bloody way, and smote fierce Kent, and stretched 
him lifeless on the ground. Then the king fled from 
the field, and the Scots pursued him till the going 
down of the sun, when the Caledonian victors regaled- 
themselves with the wine and spoils of the enemy's 
camp. 

Longcastle saw with grief the foul retreat of his 
men, attempted to rally, and encourage them to return 
upon the Scots in the dead of the night, and to sur- 
prise them while they lay drunk with the wine of 
their camp. " W hence does our hearts feel this cow- 
ard terror, defeat never stained our conquering arms, 
said Longcastle, stay, take courage ; why ignobly 
flvje ? bravely conquer or bravely die. We can ea- 
sily vanquish yon handful of Scots now absorbed in 
luxury." Then Longcastle gave the command and 
led them to the fight, in hopes to surprise the Scots, 
under the darkness of the night. But the alert Scot- 
tish watchmen descried their rallying enemies, and 
quickly informed Wallace their chieftain, who as a 
lion in full strength, arose, blew the clarion to arms, 
and summoned all his warriors to battle. 

At this critical moment, a deep morass divided the 
two armies. They eagerly view each other, and mar- 
tial passions impassioned either host. The English 
Duke was unable to restrain his fury, encouraged his 



SIR WILLlAM WALLACE: 65 

troops, and ventured to tread the faithless ground on 
his fiery steed. All plunged at once into the morass and 
thousands sunk to rise no more. Those who strug- 
gled to the other side, only met a change of death ; 
the fiery Scots soon deprived them of breath. 

Longcastle gained the dry ground and stood upon 
the shoal. Graham saw him, raised his claymore, 
and received the rising enemy. Back sunk the cour- 
ser and overlaid his lordly rider. Thus proud Ed- 
ward lost the important day, and to his kingdom led 
his host away. 

Thus Wallace, having returned thanks to propi- 
tious Heaven, proceeded to reduce the castle of Dum- 
barton, which was situated on a rock on the banks of 
the rapid rolling Cree. They marched all that day, 
and reposed themselves in the evening, but ere it was 
day, Wallace sounded the clarion, disposed his 
troops under bravo Kierly and himself, and in the si- 
lence of the gloomy night, strained up the steep rock, 
slew the centinel as he lay sleeping at the eastern gate, 
entered the casde, and dispatched every opponent. 
All gave way ; some leaped over the walls, and tum- 
bled down the steep and sunk into the deep below ; 
others bravely attempted to repel their assailants and 
met their fate under the hewing sweep of the Scot- 
tish claymores. Ten thousand cries seemed to rend 
the sky, from their confused enemies : cries of mercy 
and cries of revenge mingled in their crowd, amidst 
yells and groans of fallen warriors, while the slogans 
of" Wallace and freedom," " Scotland and Liberty," 
re-echoed from the Scottish lines to seal the impend- 
ing doom of their enemies. 

F2 



66 THE LIFE OF 

Thus sunk the strength of the proud Southerons 
in the strong hold of Dumbarton, and thus fell the op- 
pressors of Scotland. 

The English then sued for peace, and agreed to 
ratify the treaty of Ruthington vesa, at Ruthenglen, 
church for one year in February, 1297, in order to 
have time to recruit their strength, and again attempt 
the conquest of the country. 



HOSTILITIES RECOMMENCED. 

Wallace hums the barns of Ayre, drives Bishop 
Beck from Glasgow, and kills Lord Piercy. 

Good Wallace thus concluded a truce for one whole 
year with his treacherous enemies ; but ere one 
month had elapsed, they plotted the ruin of the Scot- 
tish warriors, and determined, by awful murder, to 
enchain the country. 

The King of England proceeded to Scotland and 
held a council at Carlisle, of his captains, in June, 
1297. No Scot was there except the traitor, Sir 
Aymer de Vallance, who had deserted their cause in 
former times. In this council they consulted how 
they might cut off all the Barons of Ayre, and there- 
by involve the invincible Wallace in the general mas- 
sacre. 

Sir Amyer de Vallance, deeply versed in the mys- 
teries of Pluto, proposed a scheme to ensnare the 
chiefs of Scotland, and involve their lives ; a plot 
which hell could never have contrived ; an advice, 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 6/ 

which belzebub could not have given, that will ever 
stamp the character of consenting Southerons with 
everlasting infamy. He advised them to appropriate 
the four barns of Ayre for a Justice Ayre or general 
council of tiie Scottish Barons, to call them all to it, un- 
der the pretence of settling the affairs of the nation 
on receiving a scheduleof their estates, that quiet pos- 
session might be granted tliem under the great seal ot 
Lord Aymer de Vallance, the Deputy Warden of 
Scotland, who had just arrived at Ayre, and there to 
despatch them as they entered one by one, into the 
barns. 

Lord Arnulf, a cruel and bloody justice to whom 
Hell could not produce a match, undertook to dis- 
patch the Scottish Nobles, in the bloody Barns of 
Ayre. Sir Ronald Crawford went to Ayre, and dread- 
ing no harm entered the Barns, where the pretended 
Council sat ; and on the 18th of June 1297, was im- 
mediately hoisted up to a Baulk. 

The Wallaces, Crawfords, Kennedys, Blairs, Mont- 
gomeries, Campbells, Barclays, Boyds, Stewarts, and 
many other brave Barons of Scotland had the same 
fate in those sanguinary Barns of Ayre, and their 
massacred bodies were piled up in heaps in the cor- 
ners of those slaughter houses. The way and man- 
ner in which the Southerons executed this horrid deed 
were by placing strong men to keep the entry, to al- 
low one only to enter at a time, to slip a running cord 
over each of their heads as they entered singly, and 
by placing men in another part of the barn to haul 
I the rope the moment it snared its victim, whose car- 
! cass was successively thrown into the opposite cor- 
I ner ! great numbers, even eighteen score of Nobles 



ec fcTHE LIFE OF 

and landed men entered, none came out alive ! many 
noble warriors and heroes were betrayed and hanged 
on that day of mourning ! such forms of massacre was 
never invented before in any nation under the canopy 
of weeping Heaven ; such a deed was never heard of 
in the world ! and to crown their sanguinary barba- 
rity, all their bodies as naked as they were born, were 
cast out in heaps to the public view, and exposed in 
black derision ! Ah ! dreadful work of man ! kind 
Heaven ! shall our hosts now sleep ? while our old 
men, women and children chaunt their coronachs 
over the bodies of the massacred Chiefs! shall 
our country endure such cruel massacre of her sons 
without resisting the injury ? No ; good Robert Boyd 
assembled twenty men of W allace-s party, and com- 
manded them in his absence. Kierley, Cleland, 
Stephen of Ireland and others fled to Longlandwood, 
with sorrowful hearts, after they had appointed a good 
woman, his old nurse Elspa, to inform Wallace of the 
treachery and massacre in the bloody Barns of Ayre, 
as soon as he should arrive in town, so that he might 
escape the snare laid for him by the cruel Southerons. 
Wallace hastened to Ayre, and, as he passed along, 
the woman loudly called him, and said, " Nothing 
but breach of faith are within these walls, our Bar- 
ons and Knights were hanged like beasts to a tree as 
they entered the Barns.*' Wallace wept for the loss 
of his dear relations, the Wallaces and Crawfords, 
and asked her, whether his uncle Sir Ronald Craw- 
ford was butchered there. " Yes,'' said the faithful 
matron, "I saw him cast out dead and naked, I kiss- 
ed his pale lips, covered his boby with a cloth, and 
wept. Thou art his sister's son, revenge his death 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 6» 

I pray thee, with all thy might and haste ; I shall as- 
sist you, as much as a woman can do in the case of 
retributive justice." Then he enquired of her of 
Robert Boyd, William Crawford, Adam Wallace, 
&c. ana scampered off to Longlandwood and mourn- 
ed for his dear friends. 

Meantime Lord Arnulf sent fifteen well harnessed 

Englishmen and a Macer to bring him back to law. 

They rode furiously to Wallace, who turned upon 

them with his broad claymore in his hand. The first 

of his numerous enemies he cut asunder through the 

middle ; the next received a fatal blow ; the third he 

clave down through the body ; the fourth he levelled 

to the ground ; and the fifth he felled dead on the spot. 

Three men who were with him killed another five 

of the enemy, and the rest fled to tell their lord how 

'ten men out of fifteen were killed by four Scots, con- 

•' eluding that all would have shared the same fate, if 

jthelr horses had not carried them away in full speed, 

land that the Scots were so fierce and strong, that 

every stroke laid one of tliem dead on the field. 

The Southeions all concluded that Wallace must 
jhave been in that encounter, and a Knight answered, 
'( if Wallace hath escaped this justice Ayre, then all 
ithat we have done is in vain." Arnulf replied, 
" what would ye do if there were many enemies, when 
"lyou seem to be frightened at one man, and although 
(he was there I would count the matter light, who stays 
liere shall be a Knight in these realms, and I shall 
'deal out the lands of Scots dispatched yesterday, to 
Itrue Englishmen in the morning.'* 
1 The Southerons all repaired to their quarters. — 
Tour thousand men lodged in the town and Barns of 



to THE LIFE OF 

Ayre that night, after they had gorged themselves with 
plenty of meat, wine a«d ale. Supposing no danger 
from the Scots, they placed no sentinels at the gates, 
fell into a profound sleep, by the bumpers they had 
taken, after the labours and toils of that bloody day 
in the Barns, and were laying in security. 

As soon as the faithful matron saw them laying in 
this unguarded state, she ran with some men to Long- 
landwood, to inform Wallace of their drunken and 
naked condition. " Yon bloodhounds, she said, are 
all drunken and could not see a Scotsman in their 
company.'' "If that be true,'' answered Wallace, 
" its time to move and set a fire unto their dwellings." 
Three hundred choice men by this time had rallied 
round his standard, v/illing and ready to spend the 
last drop of their blood " for Wallace and Freedom." 
Wallace called a council of war and consulted with 
them what course they should take to be avenged of the 
deaths of their nobles and relations. They first cast lots 
betv/een five of their company, viz. William Wallace, 
Boyd, Crawford, Adam Wallace and Auchinleck, ap- 
pealing to the court of Heaveii to decide who sliould be 
theirCommanderin the attack which they meditated. — 
The lot fell on William Wallace, even the third time. 
He dien rose, and drawing his sword, solemnly vow- 
ed to the Almighty Disposer of Events, that he should 
be avenged on their cruel oppressors, for the death of 
his kindred Scots, whose blood was shed in the Barns 
of Ayre. " I shall make tliem all pass through the 
flames, before I either eat, drink or sleep," said the 
Chieftain, and he kept his vow. 

The faithful matron chalked ail the doors where 
the English lay ; Wallace sent twenty m^n to fasten 



SIR \Vn>LIAM WALLACE: 71 

all their doors with osiers ; sent fifty more to lie in 
ambush at the gates of the castle, to kill all who might 
attempt to escape, and the rest he commanded to sur 
round the Barns, and not to allow a Southeron to 
escape on pain of death. The women brought fire 
and flax, and all combustibles to them, and the sol- 
diers set fire to their houses and the Barns and raised 
a huge conflagration over the heads of his mortal 
enemies. Wallace then called out to Lord Arnuif, 
*' execute your law against us who live and have 
escaped your judgment, deal not our land, for faith 
that is not fair, thy cruel bloodshed confess and mourn, 
take now thy choice whether to hang or burn.*' None 
escaped this fiery ruin, lord or nighty and all were 
burned or buried in the smoking ruins. When the 
huge roofs fell in among them, O what an awful and 
lamentable noise of shrieks and groans of consuming 
warriors. Some sought the doors and were cut down 
by the surrounding Scots, or driven back into the fire, 
to learn to be hangmen there. 

Friar Drumlaw, Prior of Ay re, had seven score of 
men lodged upon him that night. As soon as he 
found them to be all asleep, he caused seven of his 
brother Friars, to command the English armour and 
choose their swords, and led them from house to house 
where the Southerons lay, and dispatched them in 
their sleep. Five thousand died that night by fire and 
sword. O what a night of justest vengeance was that 
in which the Castle and Barns of Ayre were burned ! 

Wallace and his men assembled after the burning 
of the English garrison, and he skid to them, " You 
know, my friends, that Justice Court was also ap- 
pointed for Clydesmen at Glasgow, in presence of 



n THE LIFE OF 

Bishop Beck and Lord Piercy, let us wing our course 
towards that town and surprise our enemies who have 
murdered our Ivindred." He left the Burgesses to 
watch the house of Ayre with vigilance, and having 
refreshed themselves he ordered their march to Glas- 
gow on the choicest of English horses, now all cavalry, 
three hundred strong, to attack their ruthless enemies. 
They passed the Bridge of Glasgow, before their ene- 
mies knew of their coming ; but Lord Piercy muster- 
ed his men in good order and prepared for a fierce 
contest with the Scots'* warrior, Bishop Beck and 
Piercy led a thousand men in bright armour to the 
approaching combat. Wallace advanced in head of 
his men and reconnoitred his enemies, and returned 
with the grand plan of the attack in his mind. He 
divided his men into two squadrons, harnessed them 
and called true Auchinleck, saying, " Uncle, before 
we attack these adversaries, I ask you whether j'ou 
will attack thera in the rear or tail, or gallop up in 
front, kneei down and receive the Prelate's benison." 
*' I will not be ambitious, quoth Auchinleck, yourself 
may take his blessing for me. That is the post of 
honour, and your right, I shall bear up his tail with 
all my might.'' " Since we must part, it will be 
wrong to stay too long from us, said Wallace, your 
men must not regard their numbers. March on j^oitr 
squadron fast, for God's sake, elude the view of the 
Southerons in marching round to the rear through the 
north-east raw." Adam Wallace, and Auchinleck 
marched briskly with seven score of men up the 
back part of the town, and Wallace and Boyd with 
two hundred and sixty men galloped up ia sight of 
the enemy, along the plain street. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 73 

The English wondered how there were so few of 
them, and an ensign of Beck and Piercy demanded 
of them what they were, when a fierce encounter im- 
mediately commenced with dreadful din on either 
side. The hardy Scots bravely fought and heaped 
the streets with slain enemies. They peirced their 
plates with their claymores and brought them down 
at every blow. ^, The dust rose like smoke around 
the combatants, darkened the sun, and ascended to 
the clouds. 

Lord Piercy 's men were expert warriors and 
fought most vahantly with Wallace and Boyd for 
some time, but in good time, Adam Wallace and 
brave Auchinlcck boldly rushed upon the rear of the 
enemy, with broad claymores, and galled them se- 
verely. The Southerons faced about and received 
the Scots warmly, but the Scots in front and rear, 
made such slaps or chasms among the ranks of their 
enemies as never yet had been seen in any fight. 

The Scottish claymores swept the field, and Wal- 
lace amidst the throng, swung his long and heavy clay- 
more, and at Piercy aimed a dreadful blow and clave 
his head in pieces, and Bishop Beck saw his men fail 
and led them off in confusion through a wood and 
marched them off to Bothwell. 

The English left seven hundred dead on the field 
of battle. Then Wallace pursued the fugitives to 
Bothwell ; but Aymer de Vallance, escaped in flight 
from that tremendous contest and defeat. 

The followers of Sir William Wallace soon ac- 
quired 4he form of an army, after such signal victo- 
ries, and many of the nobles of Scotland ; joined 
G 



74 THE LIFE OF 

him. Among others, Robert, Bishop of Glasgow ; 
Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick ; James Stewart, 
Lord Steward of Scotland ; Sir John Stewart, his 
brother ; Sir Andrew Murray, of Bothwell ; Sir- 
William Douglass, of Glasgow ; Robert Boyd ; Lord 
Campbell, of Argyle ; Richard Lundie, &c. To 
defeat their attempts to liberate themselves from 
tyranny, Edward sent an army of 40,000 men to sup- 
press them. 

The Scots met them at Irvine, protected by a lake 
in front and entrenchments on the flanks. This lit- 
tle band was under the command of four Captains, 
equal in power over their divisions ; Bishop of Glasgow, 
William Douglass, Andrew Murray and William Wal- 
lace for they were not yet disposed to confer the chiet 
command on Wallace, and they became so divided 
in their sentiments, that they accommodated matters 
with the enemy, on receiving an indemnity for all 
past offences. The treacherous Southerons, however, 
bioke the agreement, confined the Bishop to Rox-. 
burgh Castle, and Sir William Douglass to the Cas- 
tle of Berwick. 

But the brave soul of Wallace could never permit 
him to compromise with the English, he only despis-*^ 
ed to quarrel with the other captains who were of 
higher rank, and prudently withdrew with all his vol- 
untary band and fell upon the rear of the English 
army, retreating through Galloway took three hun- 
dred men and their baggage. Wallace then retired 
to Dunduff to refresh his men, and remained with 
good Sir John Graham five days, in the summer sea- 
son, teljingf him all that had befallen them in Ayre 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 75 

and Glasgow, even until he received tidings from 
some true-hearted Scots, that Buchan, Athol, Mon- 
teith and Lorn had marshalled all their forces against 
faithful Argyle, in the cause of the usurper Edward. 
Campbell, of Argyle, kept his heritage of Lochlow, 
in spite of Edward's power and the bloody sword of 
Macfadzean, who was promised the possession of Ar- 
gyle, &c. on event of their conquest. Edward prom- 
ised the lands of Lorn to John, in case of the dispos- 
session of Duncan the lawful proprietor of the lands. 
In hopes to acquire great possessions, even of five 
Lordships, Macfadzean mustered anarm3''of vilerun- 
nagates consisting of fifteen thousand malefactors and 
exiles, mostly' from Ireland, who spared neither man, 
woman nor child in their march through the devoted 
villages and districts of Caledonia, "Burn, Destroy 
and Kill," were the constant commands of that san- 
guinary Macfadzean. 

As soon as Campbell understood, that Macfadzean 
entered Lochlow, he placed three hundred men in 
Craigmuir and held that place of strength against all 
the powers of Edward and the army of Macfadzean. 
He broke down the bridge across the river Forth, and 
defended the ford that none should pass over at any 
place, except at a narrow place, between two rocks 
where four men could not pass over in front, Mac- 
fadzean attempted to pass. At this juncture, Duncan 
of Lorn went off in quest of Wallace to succour the 
men of. Argyle against the merciless host of Mac- 
fadzean. 

Gilmichael, a brave footman, accompanied Dun- 
can to guide him in the way to Wallace, Earl Mal- 
com, hostess to Wallace, with his brave men and 



76 THE LIFE OF 

Sir John Graham and Richard of Lundie, assembled 
their several forces, marched with him, and disputed 
the field against bloody Macfadzean and his merci- 
less crew. 



WALLACE KILLS MACFAUSEAN. 

Wallace then marched to view the savage host 
of Macfadzean, low, posted in Lochlo\\, passed to 
the north of Stirling Castle where the cruel Ruickby 
commanded in the service of Edward. Wallace 
looked back to Earl Malcom and said, " what would 
you think of reducing this fortress by some stratagem, 
and clear the country behind us of these oppressors.'' 
Sir John Graham immediately agreed with him in 
the propriety of the undertaking, and he divided his 
men so that the English could not discover their 
strength ; placed Earl Malcom to he in ambush, 
while he and Sir John Graham, with one hundred 
brave Scots warriors rode through the town in noble 
order, passed the Castle and made towards the 
bridge. Ruickby saw them with great impatience, 
and caused seven score of archers to sally forth, pur- 
sue and engage them : but Wallace never felt fear 
and slew the foremost with his spear. Sir John Gra- 
ham also transfixed the first he met ; but broke his 
spear into the second in front. Then he drew his 
gallant claymore to receive a host of archers which 
crowded on him and killed his horse. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 77 

Wallace saw the jeopardy of good Sir John Gra- 
ham, fighting on foot, lighted from his horse, with 
some other brave men in armour, and repulsed their 
numerous enemies, which had hoped to escape into 
the Castle. But noble Earl Malcom started from his 
ambush and marched his men between them and the 
Castle, and then made tremendous havoc among their 
surrounded enemies. 

Many English nobles fell that day, and the Scots 
chieftain winged his course towards Ruickby, and 
severed his head from his shoulders with one sweep 
of his claymore. His two sons and 30 men escaped 
and re-entered the Castle. 

The Lennox' men would not leave the Castle, but 
besieged it with great vigilance, while Wallace pro 
ceeds to meet cruel Macfadzean, against whom he had 
sworn revenge, vowing that he would never sleep 
sound nor rest contented, till he should dispatch that 
wicked tyrant and murderer of our men, women and 
children. Two thousand brave and valiant Scots 
warriors assembled to Wallace at Stirling bridge and 
rode with him to Argyle, under the guidance of Dun- 
can of Lorn. 

Meantime Ruickby's sons concluded to capitulate 
to the noble Earl Malcom, on condition that he would 
spare their lives and let them return to their native 
land. Wallace still continues his march, with all his 
force to encounter Macfadzean, foot and horse, by the 
direction of Gilmichael, the spy, whom Duncan of 
Lorn had sent to lead them tothe ranks of the enemy. 
But his men began to faint in their forced marches, 
^ little beyond Strathsillon, and he left the feebler 
G 2- 



78 THE LIFE OF 

men to follow the rest of the army as they were able 
to accomplish the journey. 

Wallace then divided his men, numbered five hun- 
dred stout Westland men to fight under himself; five 
hundred to fight under Sir John Graham ; five hun- 
dred to fight under Lundie, the captains of their seve- 
ral hosts; and five hundred had loitered behind, — 
They marched over a high mountain into Gendoher, 
met their spy and Lord Campbell, with three hun- 
dred valiant, chosen men, and mutually encouraged 
each other never to dread their foes, who were then 
half naked and almost destitute of arms. 

Then to Lochdocher the}^ marched with a design 
to surprise their enemy. An out-spy and Gilmichael 
seized on his person, and brought him into the posses- 
sion of the Scots, and he never returned to tell Mac- 
fadzean the news. 

The men are now forced to alight and to turn their 
horses loose, and Wallace cried, " let us see who 
walks best on^ foot, and traverse mosses, moors, 
craigs and woods. ^' So along the banks of the 
river, three in front, he led his men, until all had pas- 
sed up the craggy mountains, eighteen hundred brave 
Scots, and surprised Macfadzean and his numerous 
host in front, and drove them with great havoc into 
confusion. They soon rallied again, and collecting 
all their banditti strength, they rushed upon the val- 
iant Scots, who received them with their dreadful 
claymores, repulsed them and drove them back more 
than five acres breadth with great slaughter. 

Wallace made a space of the reaped field about a 
rood of land, and Sir John Campbell, Lundie, Adam 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 79 

Wallace and Robert Boyd signalized themselves in 
the sanguinary contest, and as Captains of the Scots, 
encouraged their brave men, in the front of the bat- 
tle. The conflict lasted for two hours, and seemed 
long to hang in some uncertainty of success on either 
side, until the Scots chiefs condensed their warriors 
and pressed forwards in dense columns, making fear- 
ful chasms in the Irish ranks under cruel Macfadzean, 
and drove them over craggy rocks, into the flood be- 
low, where two thousand sunk to rise no more. 

The Scots under Macfadzean laid down their arms, 
and on their knees loudly cried for mercy and quar 
ter. " They are our own blood, said Wallace, we are 
bound to give penitents generous quarters, but these 
foreign murderers of our men, women and children, 
deserve no mercy ; blood calls for blood." But Mac- 
fadzean escaped with fifty men to a stone cave under 
Craignmir. Duncan of Lorn desired permission of 
Wallace to go with a detachment of brave men to 
visit the cave, who, when they arrived killed! the fil>) 
men and brought the head of Macfadzean on a spear 
Lord Campbell placed the bloody head of Macfad 
zean on lofty Craigmuir, in honour of Ireland. 



80 THE LIFE OF 

THS VIRTUOUS SCOTS SWORK FIDELITY TO WALLACE. 

In a Council at Ardchatton proclaimed Jiim Regent 
or IVarden of Scotland, or Viceroy in Bruce^s ah' 
sence. Restores Duncan to his heritage of Lorn. 

Wallace took Stirling Castle ; recovered Argyle 
and Lorn, Perth, Cooper of Angus, and Glanies, 
demolished the Castle of Forfar, Brichinhin and 
Montrose, surprised Dunnoter and garrisoned it, 
entered Aberdeen while in flames, and proceeded to 
besiege the Castle of Dundee. 

Wallace accepted of the names and tides of Re- 
gent, not out of ambition or desire to rule, but because 
it was a title of honour and great responsibility con- 
ferred on him by his countrymen out of their pure 
love and benevolence. In this office he behaved so 
valiantly, that in a short time, by a brave army of 
true hearted Scots, he recovered all the places of 
strength in the kingdom, and reduced the bordermen 
on the south of Scodand to peace and oraer. 

They flocked to Wallace from all parts of the land 
and acknowledged the victorious hero as Warden, 
and he governed the kingdom with great honour and 
strictjustice and mercy, and fought the battles of liis 
country, in defence of her liberties, as long as he 
found his services useful to the state and the nation. 

Having recovered Lorn , he advanced Duncan to 
that heritage, which his brother's son had forfeited 
on account of his enlisting himself under the banner 
of Edward to fight against his country, and in these 
times of success acknowledged the brave Wallace as 
their Governor-General, and wise in the Cabinet and 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 81 

field. Noble Sir John Ramsay came to him with 
sixty fierce warriors, who had never been vanquished 
in the field at any former conflict with ihe English, 
in Strochane while he lay there and held Roxburgh, 
as the terror of the Saxon invaders. 

Having thus settled Argyle, Lorn, Dunkeld, &c. 
he proceeded to reduce the Saxon garrison in Saint 
Johnston, where many brave Scots were confined as 
taptives. The chieftain called Ramsay to him and 
disclosed his design on that fortress, saying, " In bon- 
ny St. Johnstown, which is situate on the banks of 
the river Tay, the Saxons rule with the arbitrary 
sway of lawful native lords. There I have set cap- 
tives at liberty ; there I have made the Saxons for 
Scotsmen die; but methinks I am not sufficiently 
avenged, till I kill ten thousand more, or expel them 
from our country. I wish to surprise its garrison, or 
battle down its proud walls, and level them with the 
ground." Ramsay, in council as wise, as brave in 
the field, answered, " that town cannot stand out 
long ; the walls are low, the surrounding ditch narrow, 
although deep, our men will soon fill it, storm the 
place, and humble the pride of the garrison." Wal- 
lace was pleased with the decision, and the rode to 
Dunkeld, to prepare all their battering rams, and 
machines of war. 

All things being ready, they carried tliem all down 
the liver, with the best workmen they could hire, 
unto the devoted town. All their host assembled in 
St. Johnston, on the day that the machines arrived. 
In a very few hours the ditches were filled with earth 
and stones, in many places, and in others, floats of 



82 THE LIFE OF 

light timber were thrown across, the warriors quietly 
passed,raised batterics,and advanced to batter thewalls. 

Sir John Graham, Ruthven, and Sir John Ramsay 
beseiged the bridge, and Wallace surrounded the 
town. The Saxons made a desperate resistance. — 
They fought with new engines, casting large stones 
over the walls, upon the heads of the Scots. But 
Wallace forced his way, and passed over the walls' 
with a thousand men. At tlie same moment, Sir 
John Graham and Ramham opened a breach and 
entered at the turret gate, and cut to pieces all 
who opposed them. Tiien a dreadful cry was rais- 
ed in the town, and two thousand of the Soutlierons 
were put to the sword in the street. Sir John 
Stewart saw that the town was lost, and fled like a 
coward with sixty men in a barge towards Dundee, 
and left his host to die by the Scottish claymores. 

Wallace remained four days in Saint Johnston, 
peopled it with Scots, and left Ruthven captain of the 
garrison, to keep the place. Then he marched off to 
reduce the Abbey of Cooper of Angus. The Ab- 
bot fled on his approach. So did the English in Gla- 
mis, Forfar, Breechin, Montrose, Mearns, &c. and 
collected themselves to the number of four thousand in 
Dunnoter Castle. 

When Wallace arrived at Dunnoter, he offered 
tliem their lives, on condition they would leave the 
kingdom, but unfortunately they would not believe 
the sincerity of the Scots, and did not accept the over- 
tures of merey ; so he set fire to the church and burn- 
ed them in it ; the rest of them rushed out over the . 
rocks, and fell headlong into the sea below. Not 
one remained alive ! Wallace then marched on to* 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 83 

Aberdeen, seized all the goods and ba{?ga|?e of the 
Enghgh in then- sliips, which were ready to sail ; 
burned the ships on the water. The enemy them- 
selves burned the town but sparedthepriests,womenand 
children, whom they always saved in their conquests. 
After these dreadful exploits of retribution, he 
marched on to Buchan to surprise Beaumont, who, 
when he heard of the approach of Wallace fled to 
the Sloins, entered a ship, and returned to England. 
To Cromarty he winged his awful course, slew many 
of the Southerons, returned to Aberdeen, and pro- 
ceeded to Dimdee. 



WAI-'.ACE LEAVES THE SIEGE OF THE CASTLE OK VVUhT.t. 

Defeats Crcssingham at Stirling ; causes the harons 
to swear allegiance to their king and country under 
his regency ; appoints 7vise goverjior^,\ skillful 
captains^ sheriffs, Szc. to govern the people in 
Bruce^s absence and regulates the affairs of the 
nation. 

Sir William Wallace, the Governor General, thought 
\i prudent to raise the siege of the castle of Dundee, 
land march in all hnste to Stirling- to await the ap- 
proach of Cressingham and Warren, who advanced 
Iwith6(>,000 men horse and foot,to re-conquer Scotland. 
I The traitor. Earl Patrick, joined the enemy at 
Tweed, and all marched to Stirling. Wallace re- 
Iceived information of their coming, marched his men 
through St. Johnston, reviewed them in SherifTmuir, 
land encouraged them in the language of a true pa- 
triot ; so did Sir John Graham, in the ardour of his 



84 THE LIFE OF 

soul. " We have performed greater feats in the field, 
said he, with a smaller force, and made a stronger 
enemy yield, than the enemy that now comes to in- 
vade our country, murder our old men and children, 
deflour our virgins, pollute our wives and reduce us 
to chains and slavery." " Who fight, said Wallace, 
for just and righteous ends, God always sends them 
assistance. Then, though the enemy were ten thou- 
sand more, let us beat them as we have hitherto done, 
I purpose to contrive and set a snare for our enemies 
at Stirling bridge, and we will ensnare those fat loons 
to their destruction." 

Wallace sends information every where to acquaint 
his friends that he would fight the Southerons on 
Tuesday at Stirling bridge. On Saturday he rode 
up to the bridge, place watches that no person might 
see or know what was going on with it. Then he 
ordered the good and skillful carpenter, John Wright 
to saw the boards which joined the bridge in two by 
the middle trest, to nail it on cornal bands, and to fill 
up the chasms with clay that nothing could appear. 
He desired John Wright also to place the other end 
of the bridge on wooden rollers, in such a nice man- 
ner, that loosing one pin would precipitate the whole 
fabric in the gulf below. This being done he caus- 
ed the carpenter to sit in a close cradle below the 
bridge, giving him strict orders to loosen the pin on 
the moment of time in which he should blow his 
horn. 

The day of battle arrived, and the English advanc- 
ed with all their force, full fifty thousand strong, six 
to one Scots warrior, yet the hearts of their chiefs 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE: 85 

knew no fear, and their men never shrunk. Ten 
thousand of the enemy surrounded the castle hill, 
thinking to possess fields and cattle at their will and 
pleasure ; but the Scots kept close together ,on a 
plain field on the other side of the castle. 

Then Hugh Cressingham led the vanguard on (o 
battle with twenty thousand fierce warriors ; Earl 
Warren with thirty thousand brought up the rear.— 
Cressingham passed the bridge with twenty thousand, 
and the Scots began to tnink it high time to blow the 
horn, but Wallace strode along the field leading on 
his men, till he saw Warren's host thicken on the 
bridge, when he snatched the horn from Jop, and 
blew both loud and shrill, and v/arned John Wright 
to strike out the pin. Down sunk the bridge, men 
and horses, in the watery abyss below ! Oh ! what 
a fearful cry ascended to salute the ears of their aston- 
ished companions on either bank of the Forth, which 
separated the English army at that awful juncture ! 

Wallace, with his nine thousand hardy Scots, made 
a furious attack on the 20,000 under Oessingham, 
who had passed over before the bridge was let down, 
and repelled them five acres breadth in foul disgrace : 
Ramsay, Lundie, Boyd, and Graham made dreadful 
havoc among the retreating English. 

Wallace on foot, goes amongst the very thickest of 

I his foes, with his huge claymore and orby shield, in 

j search of Cressingham. He saw him, and sheared 

I his bloody way among the throng. He swung his 

I dreadful claymore, and notwithstanding the armour 

or coat of mail of his fierce adversary, felled him dead 

on the spot, and none could rescue him, 

H 



86 THE LIFE OF 

When the English saw their commander slain, and 
ten thousand of their companions lying dead on the 
field, they fled in great confusion in every direction, 
and seven thousand were driven into the Forth to rise 
no more. 

When Warren's men saw the appaling fate of their 
companions, and the unbroken ranks of the dauntless 
Scots, they fled to Dunbar, without one stroke of the 
sword. 

Then Wallace sent his cavalry in close pursuit cf 
the enemy, and killed prodigious numbers of them, no 
less than 30,000 fell of the English on that fatal day; 
while very iew of the Scots were killed, and none of 
note, except Andrew Murray, who was a true-hearted 
Scot. 

Wallace, in order to secure the peace of the king- 
dom, and fortify them against foreign invasion, by 
uniting all parties and conciliating them to his regen- 
cy, took an oath of all the Scottish barons, of allegi- 
ance to be faithful to their king and country, and to 
acknowledge her Warden in protecting the kingdom 
during Bruce's absence. Even Sir John Monteith, 
Lord of Arron, readily took the oath to stand faithful 
to Wallace in the cause of freedom. All those who 
would not comply, he punished severely ; some he 
condemned and executed as traitors ; some he impris- 
oned, and others he banished the kingdom, and his 
fame was heard throughout ail the kingdoms of Eu- 
rope. 

After settling the aflairs of the nation, Wallace re 
turned and took the castle of Dundee by a stratagem 
and gave the English captains their libertv. So that 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 87 

in the course of ten days, no captain remained among 
them, except in the castle of Roxburgh and of Ber- 
wick, which Wallace intended to reduce, as soon as 
he could safely leave the cabinet to grace the field. 

Chrystal Seaton, a Baron of grear fame who never 
deserted his country during their struggle for freedorp 
posted himself v/ith 40 men in ledburgh wood, and har- 
assed the English on all sides the fastness. And when 
he perceived that Heabotlle, the English captain who 
commanded ledburgh, fled from the castle with seven 
score of men, for fear of Wallace, he sallied forth 
from the wood, slew the captain and most of his men, 
took all their riches and stores, which they expected 
to carry with them to England. Seaton then placed 
Ruthven with a garrison in the castle, and marched 
into Lothian. 

Scotland then enjoyed peace and traquillity for five ' 
months, under the regency of the brave Wallace. 



A CONVENTION OF THE STATES CALLED, 

To settle all the affairs of the kingdom, at St. Johns- 
town — Corspatrick refuses to acknowledge Wal- 
lace regent ; mocks the summons to attend the 
Covnention ; Wallace discomfits him in battle and 
expels him from the kingdom. 

Corspatrick mocked the summons of the Lords of 
the Convention, and would not appear among them 
as one of them in the defence ofScotland underWallace. 



88 THE LIFE OF 

"We have great needjansweredOorspatrick to the call, 
now of a king, when VValJace reigns as governor. I 
am king of Kyle : I cannot understand how I should 
swear allegiance to him, I never held a furrow of land 
from him. I am as free to reign in this realm, Lord 
of my own lands, as aoy lord, prince or king ; I also 
possess great lands in England, and no subject can 
demand fealty of me. I deride your call." 

On reading Corspatrick's disdainful answer, Wal- 
lace could not be silent, and thus addressed the Lords 
of the Convention : 

" My Lords, tlioe can be none but one king who 
can, at once, reign over this realm. If Earl Patrick 
takes such ways and is thus allowed to insult the 
states, I plainly see that we are in a worse condition 
than we were in before ; 1 am, therefore, of opinion, 
that he ought to be made to do homage to his lawful 
king." &c. 

They all agreed that submission was absolutely 
necessary ; and Wallace, the commander in chief of 
the forces, took his leave of them and marched away 
to Kinghorn with 200 men. He received additional 
troops under brave Seaton and Robert Lauder at Mus- 
selburgh and Lyle, with 20 men at Lintown, and 
marched past Dunbar in pursuit of Corspatrick. — 
The Earl marshalled nine hundred in the field of 
Tnnerwick, as Wallace advanced with four hundred 
strong, and furiously attacked Earl Patrick's host.— 
The conflict was long and bloody, but Earl Patrick, 
was forced at last to retreat from the lield of battle. ( 

Wallace pursued him with three hundred men, by 
Cockburn , and passed on to the Bunkle-wood ; but 
Corspatrick fled to Norham, and thence into England. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 89 

Wallace then marched to the west to raise more 
troops, in order to prepare for the return of the Eng- 
lish, whom he suspected to invade Scotland and be 
avenged on him. 

Corspatrick and Bishop Beck, meantime, raised all 
the men of Northumberland, in compliance with the 
orders of King Ed ward, who also ordered Robert Bruce 
to proceed against Wallace and his country, having 
I made him believe that Wallace had assumed his 
throne. Thus from Oyss to the Tweed passed an 
army of 30,000 men. 

A squadron of ships were sent from the Thames 
: to watch Dunbar and act in concert with their land 
1 forces. Corspatrick beseiged Dunbar which was then 
I commanded by Chrystal Seaton. Wallace in good 
I time returned with five thousand brave Scotsmen to 
I rescue noble Seaton. He halted all that night at Yes- 
j ter, where Bay joined him with fifty good experienced 
j horsemen, and counselled Wallace to give Corspat- 

rick battle immediately. 
I Ccrpatrick and Beck ordered their men to lay in 
\ ambush near Spotsmuir. so that Wallace knew not of 
I the stratagem. At last W^allace discovered Cors- 
^ Patrick marching furiously over a plain field with d 
j very great host. The Scots thought themselves too 
I few to engage 20,000 men, and deemed it prudent to 
I retire to some place of strength, or to go and collect 
I more warriors. Wallace said, " that would be a 
j dangerous chance and expedient, while a furious ene- 
I my is rushing upon us. I will never flee as long as I 
have one against their four : there are twenty here 
this very day that would encounter them though 3 

H 2 



90 THE LIFE OF 

was absent ; if such be numerous, we are strong 
let us up and fight thorn ; they wont stand long." 

A dreadful conflict ensued, and five thousand of 
the English fell at the first onset, and the rest were 
put in great confusion, but Earl Patrick encouraged 
and rallied his men to renew the combat ; but Wal- 
lace and Ramsay, Graham and Lundie, Seaton and 
Adam Wallace, Hay and Lyle, Boyd and Barclay, 
Baird and Lauder, pressed so furiously on them, that 
they were obliged to retire with great slaughter. 

Just as the English began to flee, Bishop Beck 
caused his ten thousand men to sally from their am- 
bush, and to attack and surround the Scots on every 
side. 

When AVallace saw them so quickly appear, he 
deemed it expedient to retreat in close columns, but 
they were so completely surrounded, that they had to 
cut their way through them. The dreadful Patrick 
soup-ht Wallace through all the throng, and wounded 
him even through his coat of mail. Wallace then 
mustered all his strength, and aimed a blow at him ; 
it missed him but clave Maitland down. Wallace 
was then completely surrounded by the English, and 
his horse being slain, was left alone on foot. Earl 
Patrick commanded his men to bear him down with 
spears, but like a champion brave, stood qn his feet 
and hewed oft' their heads and scorned to yield. — 
Meantime the Scots missed Wallace and understood 
that he was alone or taken, and bold Graham, Lau- 
der, Lyle, Hay, Ramsay, Lundie, Boyd, and Seaton, 
brought five hundred horsemen, rescued their beloved 
chieftain, and rode off' to the main body. Two thou- 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE: 91 

sand more of the English fell in the second encoun- 
ter ; and the Scots, in all, lost only 500 men, and not 
one chief was slain in that battle. 

After this glorious yictory, all the country flock- 
ed to the standard of Walhice ; Crawford of Ed- 
inburgh brought four hundred men, all i-n briglit 
armour ; Sir WiUiam Douglass also came with four 
score brave men, and others came from Tiviotdale 
and Jedburgh, and soon made up two thousand brave 
warriors, who immediately proposed to pursue their 
enemies, retreating on Lammermuir, in that same 
night and to be avenged on them. Wallace ordered 
his army to march in two divisions, three thousand 
under the command of Graham, Seaton, Lauder and 
Hay, and three thousand five hundred under his^own, 
with Douglass, Ramsay, Barclay, Boyd, Lundie, and 
Adam Wallace, who at the rising of the sun, surprised 
the English, unprepared to fight, rushed upon them 
furiously with their broad claymores, and cut them to 
pieces. 

Just as the English were engaged with Wallace 
under Beck, Sir John Graham led on his men from 
the ambush, and on his approach, ten thousand of 
them fled with Corspatrick and Beck and Bruce, to 
Norham house. The Scots pursued and made great 
havoc among them. 20,000 English perished that 
day by the sword i 

Wallace, on his return to St. Johnston, passed over 
Corspatrick's lands, took away all bis goods and demol 
ished his castles, even to the number of twelve, within 
the Merse and Lothian. He then marched through 
Edinburgh and landed in Perth, and informed the 



92 THE LIFE OF 

barons of all his battles and successes, and received 
the thanks of the states, and dealt the rebels' lands to 
those who deserved them in fighting the battles of 
their country. 



ALLACE MARCHES INTO ENGLAND, 

Remains there nine months and returns without 
battle. 

Wallace having established the affairs of the king- 
dom in a secure slate, he entered England in the be- 
ginning of November, with an army of forty thousand 
Scots, all volunteers, on purpose to obtain provisions 
for tliem during the cold winter, because famine was 
endured, by a long and desolating invasion. 

He began at the river Tweed to march his army, 
and spared neither man nor beast ; burned all tow.ns 
in Northumberland, even Durham was committed to 
the flames. Churches, abbeys, priories, convents, 
women and children were spared ; corn and cattle 
became their lawful prey, in return for what they had 
done to Scotland. 

All the inhabitants of Northumberland fled with 
their families and goods to New-Castle, on the ap- 
proach of the Scots firmy, who ravaged the country 
between Tyne and Derwent, for the space of 20 days, 
and sent much spoil home to their famishing country- 
men. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. D3 

Wallace then marched to Carlisle, and summoned 
the city to surrender ; but, on refusal, he turned his 
attention to attack Berland, Allerdale and the country 
as far as Cockermouth, because he had no battering 
engines to beat down its proud walls. He next march- 
ed to New-Castle, and wTien passing the village of 
Kyton, the inhabitants confiding in the impossibility 
of Wallace reaching them, who were surrounded with 
water, insulted the Scots with opprobrious language 
as objects of derision, but Wallace and his men swam 
through the water, burned down their village, turned 
their laugh into mourning, and they fled with preci- 
pitation in every direction. He burned the towns of 
New-Castle and Durham, but the castles were left un- 
reduced for want of battering rams. 

Wallace next marched to York, slew all men in 

' arms who opposed them, and burned the city, carry- 

I ing off the spoils. Always as he passed, he levelled 

t small forts and castles with the ground. 

' He spent fifteen days about the walls of York, 

' and there Edward sent a knight to entreat him to 

I cease from burning and slaying, promising that he 

would give him batUe in fifteen days. Wallace an- 

I swered, "I will desist both from fire and sword for 

I forty days, if Edward will keep his promise and meet 

me on the field." Edward did set his hand and seal 

to this promise, and Wallace marched off the second 

day after, and pitched his tents in the northwest near 

Northallertown, and proclaimed peace for forty days. 

There Sir Ralph Raymont attempted to surprise 

Wallace and cut them to pieces. But ^ome of his 

spies got information of the stratagem and revealed it 



94 THE LIFE OF 

to Wallace, He then called Richard Lundie and 
Hugh Hay, and commanded them to proceed in front 
with three thousand men, and there to lay in ambush 
in profound silence and secrecy and drew up his host 
in noble array. Raymont then advanced with seven 
thousand liorsenien, but the Scots sallied forth from 
their ambush and attacked them furiously in the rear 
and laid three thousand of them dead at the first on- 
set, with Ralph Raymont, their commander,and forced 
the rest to flee. Wallace pursued them to Milton, 
killed great numbers of them, and seized the town 
with all its riches and stores, regaled his men with 
English wine, ale, beef and bread, then burned the 
town, levelled its walls, and returned to his camp, 
which he then caused to be fortified, with a deep 
ditch around them. 

Edward, then at Pumfret, sent to Wallace, pro- 
mising to give him battle, on condition he would be 
crowned king of the Scots, and thereby become his 
equal, but Wallace could not be caught in that net. 
Sir A. Campbell and Earl Malcom and the rest, 
agreed that he should be crowned ; but Wallace ab- 
solutely refused, saying, " it would be presumtuous ; I 
would be a rogue to usurp the crown — I will fight for 
my king and my country, and God above will re- 
ward me in the end." 

Woodstock counselled the nation, in Parliament, 
not to go out and meet VVallace, for they would be 
defeated ; concluding, that the best method was to 
starve liim out, by withholding all grain and cattle 
from his grasp. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 95 

Forty days being now expired, no English army 
appeared, and Wallace burned down North-allentown 
and proceeded to besiege York, spreading destruc- 
tion through York wherever he went, saving women, 
children and holy places. 



8IE0E 09 TORK. 

Wallace commanded his eight captains, Lauder 
Malcom, Boyd, Campbell, Ramsay, Graham, Craw- 
ford, and Auchenleck, at the head of four divisions, 
itwo to each division, and the four divisions to attack 
ithe four gates of the city, with a thousand Scots arch- 
'ers for evei'y gate. Seventeen thousand English then 
^appeared on the walls, boldly using the bow and spear, 
jfuriously sallying out to repel them, but received ? 
warm reception from the Scots, and were driven back 
jwithin their walls. They then cast faggots of fire, 
^red hot bars of iron, stones, burning pitch, and every 
^prodigious thing, to gall the besiegers, who on the 
first day, only burned the bulwarks of the town, and 
past the turrets down. 

j Next morning at break of day they encompassed 
the walls in the same manner, and galled the besieged 
severely with their arrows, set fire to every gate, but 
|:ould not reduce the town that day, and they retired 
fit night. 

Meantime, in the dead of the night, the English, un- 
ler the command of Sir Wra Morton and Sir Wm. 



9G THE LIFE OF 

Lees, made a furious sally out with five thousand men, 
on Eari Malcom, in order to surprise them and cut 
them to peices. 

Wallace, as he rode around watching the motions 
of the enemy, saw them coming and blew his mar- 
tial horn, roused all his warriors, who lay in their 
harness, and led them to meet the enemy, with their 
claymores. Wallace rode briskly up and made a 
grand charge, and drove them again within their 
walls, leaving Sir John Morton dead upon the ground, 
with 1200 of his men to grace the field of battle. 

Next day the Scots for the third time surrounded 
the town and assaulted the gates. — Just when their 
provisions were done, the English, not knowing the 
condition of the Scots, beat a parley. Wallace ap- 
peared and asked them what they meant by it. — 
The major in the name of the rest, promised to pay a 
ransom if the Scots would v/ithdraw. Wallace re- 
plied, '' we value not your gold — j^our king promised 
to give us battle ; let him act faithfully. The major 
answered very corteously, " He is the king, and we 
are but subjects ; take the gold and retire." 

Wallace consulted with his captains and officers, 
who agreed to take the gold, because victuals were 
scarce, the place strong, themselves fatigued ; and 
to return to tiieir native land, with booty. Wallace 
said, " I shall not be content, except tliey let the Scots 
banners wave upon the walls in sight of both armies, 
from eight in the morning till twelve at noon*" 

They received five thousand pounds of Englisli 
gold, paid down in specie to their army that day, and 
plenty of provisions were conferred upon them for 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 97 

the twenty days they remained in York city after 
J the capitulation. 

As they marched homeward, they burned all Myld- 
■Inme, levelling' the towers, killing the deer in the for- 
. ests, and breaking down parks and buildings:. — 
■ Wallace then turned on the opulent Shire of Ilich- 

mond 5 burned Ramswatch and killed Fechew, the 
I captain, and five hundred men. 
^ Wallace then caused the widow of Fechew to car- 
|ry her husband's head to London, and tell Edward, 

that Wallace had sworn by all the Fates, to be nt 
I London gates ; and that he would march with fiif 
1 And sword through the south-west of England. 
^ They spared the whole country of Saint AlhnnV, 
J on account of the friendship of the Prior. 

( 

I 

|TIIF. QUF.FM OK ENGLAND FROCEEDS TO WALLACE WITH OVF.RTURI S 
OF PEACE. 



I After the parliament of England concluded on 
i making overtures of peace to conquering WiUacc, 
Ino man could be found to be the embassy on such a 
Icommission ; but the Queen offered her services, and 
Iwas commissioned to treat for peace. 

As soon as Wallace saw the Queen with a glorious 
retinue of females and priests, and had finished the 
'usual ceremony of receiving his illustrious guest, he 
asked her, " Madam, how do you like our encamping 
[here ?" The Queen answered, " Sir, very well 5 but 



98 THE LIFE OF 

we need 5?^our friendship— God grant we may speed 
in this our errand.'' 

Then Wallace withdrew and called a council of 
war, and warned them against the subtleties of wo- 
man and the dangers of treating with such a person- 
age, in point of fidelity and confidence. After thala 
they served up a handsome dinner and the Queen^ 
treated all the Scottish captains with every rich 
dainty. 

Wallace, after the council had decided on their 
conduct in this affair, calmly asked her what she in- 
tended in her journey ? " Peace," answered the 
Queen, " we have no other thought, this raging war 
has wrought our destruction, grant it, Sir, for his sake 
that died for us." " Madam," said Wallace, " you 
ask no peace but for your own selfish ends, which 
can never compensate for the injustice done to our 
royal prince, in case of the arbitration between him 
and Baliol, his competitor, and for the other injuries 
done to the people in invading and laying waste the 
country." Hesilrig's cruelty, the hanging of our ba- 
rons, the repeated violations of treaties, &c. at the 
rehearsal and remembrance of which Wallace and the j 
Queen wept. " Wallace," she said, " we shall cease ! 
from this kind of discourse," and told three thousand 
pounds of English gold down, in His presence. Wal- 
lace then said " Madam, I will not grant you peace 
in the absence of your king ; with ladies, Madam, I 
cannot make a truce lest your false king break it ;" 
so the conference broke up and she returned to telli 
of the greatness of the Scot's hero and his brave ar- 
my, and counselled parliament to send able men tc 
treat with the chieftain of Scotland. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 99 

Lords Clifford, Beaumont; and Woodstock, came 
commissioned to treat with Wallace, and the last ti 
these debated very subtly, but Wallace told him plain- 
ly that he used sophisms, and that they should restore 
Roxburgh and Berwick, their king Robert, Randell, 
Lord Lorn, Earl Buchan, Gumming, Soules, &c. so 
they concluded a peace for five years. 

Thus AVallace delivered Scotland the first time 
from the English yoke, but they behaved so artfully 
that the nation should not see their king during the 
lifetime of Wallace. 



WAIXACE INVITED TO THE COURT 0# FRANCE. 

Leaves Lord James Stewart, Steward of Scotland, 
Governor in his absence. 

Wallace, on tlie invitation of the king of France 
proceeded with fifty men to that kingdom. But they 
had not been more than two days at sea, before they 
saw sixteen sail of heavy ships bearing down upon 
them, having red colours flying, and the master of 
the vessel apprehended them to be pirates, under the 
personal command ofRedReaver,the tyrant ofthe seas, 
as they really happened to be the same monsters, 
who spared no lives for gold and other property, 
said the master; and their commander delights in 
blood and rapine. 



100 THE LIFE OF 

Wallace encouraged him and enquired into the 
marks whereby he could distinguish him among his 
men. " At first sight you will ken him," said the 
master, " and will soon distinguish him from his men ; 
a handsome proper man as there is in all France, and 
of a manly Scot's countenance, taller than any of his 
men a great deal, clothed with scarlet above a coat of 
mail, the foremost ship that pursues us, so he sails 
and you will quickly know it. He will enter first 
himself to enter our ship. There is a bar of blue in 
a shining shield, the badge of a christian, a band of 
white desiring nj'e the field, and the red betokens 
blood and hardihood." 

Wallace ordered the shipmaster and seamen to go 
below, and then commanded his fifty men to lie close 
down upon deck, all clothed in bright armour, as an 
ambush to deceive the ph'ates, aiid ordered William 
Crawford, whom he placed at the haulyards to haul 
down the sails when he should hail them, and Cleland 
to lay the helm along the board at the same moment. 

The Red Reaver came along side, and they re- 
ceived the salute " Strike dogs, or ye shall die," and 
they immediately hauled down the sails. The Red 
Reaver entered foremost and fearless, but Wallace 
(rappled him by the gorget and threw him down up- 
-n deck, and his mouth and nose produced blood in 
bundance. The Red Reaver looked about with his 
visage pale ; saw Wallace draw his dagger, and cried 
for mercy in the Latin language, and Wallace took 
all his weapons and spared his life, and caused him to 
swear on his word, that he should never fight against 
them or any other nation, that he should command 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 101 

all his men in the rest of his ships to cease from firing 
and war. 

The Red Reaver then held up a glove, and all 
his men ceased immediately from firing, and 
Wallace took them all into Rochelle, during their 
voyage to Rochelle, the conversafion turned on 
the way in which the Red Reaver first entered on 
a pirating life. " What countryman," said Wallace, 
" art thou ?'' " A Frenchman, Sir, and my father too;" 
answered Red Reaver. " How camest thou to this 
way of life ?" " By mischance, Sir, it was from a great 
strife ; at Court I killed a man, and was obhged to flee 
my country, I seized an English ship at Bordeaux, 
and set out a pirating, and thus I have lived on ra- 
pine and blood these sixteen years. I have conquer- 
ed many, but in spite of fate, I am vanquished by 
one. Thus I confess to my eternal disgrace, my 
bloody life. " But pray, Sir," continued Red Reaver, 
" what is your name, that you, with your own single 
valiant hand, have commanded me all my sixteen sail ; 
sure none except the Scots champion, brave Wallace, 
could thus have baffled me and all my fourteen hun- 
dred men. None whom I know should dare to en- 
counter me, and I should esteem it a great honour to 
serve in his war." Then Wallace smiled, and an- 
swered modestly, " Scotland has need of many such 
as thee, what is thy real name?" said Wallace, 
Thomas of Loungeville," answered Red Reaver. — 
*' Well deserve thy name, yea, our strife shall end 
here," answered Wallace, "if thou "wilt repent and 
mend thy life, I will ever be thy faithful friend ; I am 
that same Wallace whom thou dost now see." Then 
Loungeville fell down upon his knees, as if Wallace 
12 



162 THE LIFE OF 

had been a crowned head, saying:, " I am pleased 
much more that I have fallen into your hands, than 
that I had gotten sixty score of florins." Wallace con- 
cluded, " that since you have by chance fallen into 
my hands, and since the king- has sent for me, 1 will 
tell him that I want y«iir peace and pardon for my 
reward." Loungeville said, " if you could obtain my 
pardon, I would most faithfully serve thee ail my 
days." But generous Wallace would take no ad- 
vantage of his situation, and only desired mutual 
friendship. 

Wallace proceeded to the king of France with 
Thomas of Loungeville, and obtained pardon for 
him and all his men, and the king even knighted him 
on the spot, and henceforth he went and fought with 
Wallace in all his succeeding wars in Guienne and in 
Scotland. 



VTALLACE ARRIVES AT THE FRENCH COURT, AND 
CONQUERS GUIENNE. 

Philip, king of France, received Wallace most 
courteously, and honourably, and all his nobles vied 
with each other in marks of respect to the Scots 
hero. Wallace then requested permission to make 
war upon the English at Guienne, and he in seve- 
ral great battles conquered them, and drove them out 
of that territory, and restored it to its original propr:- 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACt:: 103 

etorsj but the kinj^ to reward his services, made him 
Lord of all Guienne, as John Blair writes. 

When the English parliament heard of Wallace's 
fighting for Philip of France, they pretended that he 
had broken the peace, and that they would again in- 
vade Scotland by sea and by land, and reduce it to a 
Roman province. So they sent a great army of foot 
and horse, and a fleet of many sail, who in conjunc- 
tion took Bothwell Castle, Saint Johnston, Dundee, 
and all the country from Cheviot to the sea, plunder- 
ing and murdering men, women and children, and all 
the old friends of Wallace, who governed the realm 
in his absence, were forced to flee and hide them- 
selves ; so the sanguinary Edward made a second 
conquest of Scotland. 

Adam Wallace, Robert Boyd, Lundie, John Gra- 
ham, and Hugh Hay, however, with about fifty men, 
soon commenced a defensive war, by intercepting 
their provisions, and cutting of straggling parties, 
they first surprised fourscore of the guard of provi- 
sions coming to Bothwell Castle, and killed sixty of 
them, and took all their gold and goods, while five 
Scots only fell in the engagement. Meantime Guth- 
rie sent to Wallace, and intreated him to come home, 
and fight again for their laws and liberties. 

Wallace soon appeared again on the field, in de- 
fence of their injured rights, and in vengeance of the 
slaughtered sons of his native Caledonia. For he 
landed at Montrose with his brave companions, and 
Longueville, and was joined by Sir John Ramsay, 
Ruthven, Bissott, Barclay, and others, making a 



104 THE LIFE OF 

martial company of three hundred men, whom he 
marched to Ochter house, determined to liberate his 
country or die in the cause of freedom. 




WALLACE RE-TAKES 8T. JOHNSTON BT STRATAGEM. 

With his small band, Wallace marched speedily 
to Perth, a place of great importance, in the heart of 
the kingdom, admitting of communication from Eng- 
land by sea. As he lay in ambush in the vicinity 
watching an opportunity to surprise the English, it 
fortunately happened that six English servants came 
forth with empty carts, to convey hay into the town. 
Wallace instantly slew the servants, and arrayed 
themselves with the upper garments, loaded the carts 
with hay, and as many as could, secreted themselves 
in the loads of hay, and six drove the carts, the rest 
lay in ambush very near, to seize every opportunity 
that might be given them to enter the town. In this 
disguise they entered the town, and Wallace slew the 
sentinel or porter, and secured the gates for the en- 
trance of his brave men, who immediately appeared 
and spread destruction in every quarter among the 
surprised English, which so terrified the rest, that Sir 
John Stewart, the governor, fled out at the gate to 
Methun wood, a hundred took refuge in the church, 
but the superstition of Wallace did not induce him 
en such an occasion to spare their lives, even in the 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. lOA 

sacred sanctuary. By tlils success Wallace acquired 
much booty, and a place of great importance in point 
of future conquests. 



WALLACE MARCHES INTO FIKK, 

Conquers the English at Blackironside, reduces 
Lockkven and Ayrth, and delivers the most part 
of the country. 

Wallace then marches into Fife, and was attacked 
by Sir John Stewart from the Ochile-hills. The 
Scots being few in number were greatly alarmed at 
this sudden surprise and deemed it best to flee and 
get across the Tay, to receive assistance from their 
brave companions, who knew nothing of their danger. 
But Wallace saw they were all dead men if they at- 
tempted to flee, so he counselled them to be posted in 
the wood of Blackironside, and to raise a strong bar- 
rier of trees to keep them from being overpowered and 
borne down by numbers. 

Stewart and Vallance, with their numerous host, 
attacked them, and surrounded the wood at the same 
time with great bravado, thinking to kill the one hun- 
dred Scots rebels without any trouble, Wallace thus 
addressed his men " take courage lads, and bravely 
show your face, the wood we will hold as long as we 
can stand, to the last man we will fight for it sword 



106 THE LIFE OF 

in hand, the right is ours, let us up to it manfully, 1 
will free this land once more before I die," which did 
so enga-g:e their hearts to him, and raised their spirits 
that many were for rushing upon the enemy in the 
open plain, but Wallace wisely restrained their ar- 
dour. Wallace's forty good archers galled the Eng- 
lish horse on every side in a most effectual manner ; 
and the rest were spearmen who desired nothing but 
honour and glory in war defended their posts with 
valour and undauntedness, leaving a space for the 
English to enter ; in order to get an advantage of 
them entering in at a narrow pass. The whole bodys 
of EngUsh made a second grand attack with the reso-^' 
lution to conquer and kill every one of the Scots, but 
they were again repulsed with great slaughter, 180 
of them laid dead on the field, then Stewart caused 
his men to sound a retreat and consulted what was 
next to be done. He charged Vallance to watcli 
all night, and keep Wallace into Cooper ; but 
Vallance would not fight all day and watch all 
night, so a dispute arose between the two English 
commanders. Wallace took the advantage of thi^ 
dispute and called on Vallance to come over to them 
and promised him a Lordship in the land. Vallance 
chose rather to take his chance with the Scots, than 
to venture his life in tho hands of the enraged Stew- 
art and Edward, so he came over with two hundred 
men. By this time, too, brave Ramsay and Ruthven 
came with three hundred men to Blackironside, and 
the whole band of Scots consisted of five hundred 
and sixty men, while Stewart drew up two thousand 
men on the plain ; the Scots advanced boldly and 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 107 

attacked them, defeated and killed all but a few fugi- 
tives on the field of battle. Wallace himself cut 
Stewart down with his great claymore. Then Ruth- 
ven marches to Perth and takes it ; Sir John Ramsay 
took Cooper of Fife ; Wallace and Crawford, Guth- 
erie, Loungeville, and Richard took Lindores without 
any opposition, all the English having fled before 
them. 

One company of English still remained in Loch- 
leven, and Wallace could not rest, until he reduanl 
it also ; so he marched off *»n the middle of the night 
with eighteen chosen men, whom he ordered to r^^- 
main on the Loch, while he, himself, would swim 
with his sword to the castle and bring away their boat 
to carry them over. 

They having obtained the boat, soon reached the 
Castle and boldly attacked it with sword in hand, and 
spared none, excepting women and children. They 
remained eight days there and receivci Ramsay with 
all his men, when they repaired to Perth where good 
Bishop Sinclair met him and counselled him to pro- 
ceed with all alacrity : and .Top was sent to the north 
for supplies, and John Blair to the \>est in Priest's 
garments to warn their friends in the west ; and the 
people flocked to the standard of Wallace frc.m every 
quarter of the land. Wallace then proceeded with 
fifty men and took Ayr;h by suiprise, killed Thomas 
Weir, the captain, and one hundred men, even all 
that were in the garrison, and delivered his uncle 
from chains. Before morning they had all the spoils 
conveyed away to Tor wood, in the neighborhood, 
and marched off to Dumbarton. 



108 THE LIFE OF 

Wallace and his men arrived at Dumbarton be- 
fore break of day. He called upon a widow of his 
acquaintance who entertained them in a close barn with 
the greatest secrecy. She presented her nine sons to 
Wallace to increase the number of his warriors, and 
made him a present of one hundred pounds. Meantime 
he caused her to mark all the doors where the South- 
erons lodged and then marched alibis men in solemn 
silence unto the gate where they securely slept. An 
English captain and nine of his messmates were still 
drinking and vaunting about their strength, one said, 
" Had I Wallace, I would think nothing to engage 
with him ;" another said, " I would tie Sir John Gra 
ham," a third said " I v/ill fight Boyd" and so on, and 
Wallace walks in among the midst of them and salut- 
ed them handsomely all round, "' I am come from my 
travels, gerrfles," said he, " I long to see your conquest 
of the Scots, some of your good cheer I would wish 
to have." Then the Captain gave him a very saucy 
answer, saying, " Thou seomest to be a Scot, likely 
to be a spy, and mayest be one of Wallace's compa- 
ny, which, if thou be, nothing shall protect thee from 
being hanged. Wallace thought it then good time to 
draw his dreadful claymore, and he cut off his head 
at one stroke, killed another, and burned a third into 
the fire, and Kierly and Stephen came in and killed 
all the rest. And then by the guidance of a hostler, 
he set fire to the buildings where the rest of the Eng 
lish slept, and burned them all to death, and proceed- 
ed to reduce Roseneath Casde. 

The night following the fall of Dumbarton, Wal- 
lace proceeded from Dumbarton Cave, whither hs 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 109 

retired for rest, after the burning the English there, 
to Roseneath where he surprised and killed eighty of 
them returning from a wedding, entered the castle 
along with the fugitives, and slew all the garrison, 
and having feasted a i'ew days on the spoils, burned 
and abandoned it. He then marched to Falkland to 
meet Earl Malcom, 'Richard Lundie, Sir John Gra- 
ham, Adam Wallace, Barclay, Boyd, &c. and to keep 
his yool and holy days. Then he heard of the de 
cease of his good old mother, and despatched Jop 
and Mr. Blair to bury her decently, and proceeded to 
the liberation of his country from a foreign yoke. 



eiR WILLtAM DOUGI^AS WINS THE CASTI.E OF SANQUHAR 
BY A STRATAGEM, 

And rescued by Wallace from falling inlo the 
hands of their cruel enemies. 

Although Sir William Douglass was constrained to 
submit to the English, and to marry an English lady, 
he took the castle of Sanquhar by stratagem, put 
every man to the sword, inclosed himself in the cas- 
tle, and sent a messenger to entreat Wallace to bring 
him speedy relief. Meantime Wallace began to 
march south, and, in his route, cut dff Ravendale, an 
English captain, with two hundred men, in the vici 
nity of the Castle of Kilsvth ; in the same route be 
K 



no THE LIFE OF 

burned the towns of Linlithgow, Dalkeith and New- 
Castle, expelling the English from every place of 
strength. He proceeded then to Peebles, where he 
received reinforcements of one hundred men under 
Lauder and Seaton, who has just issued from the 
Bass, and forty or fifty more widi Hugh Hay, and 
sixty with Rutherford, making an army of eight hun- 
dred strong. By this time the English had beseiged 
sir William Douglas in Sanquhar, and just as he was 
about to proceed on his conquering march, Dickson, 
Douglas' messenger, arrived, and requested speedy 
assistance of Wallace. Without a moment's delay, 
Wallace marched to his aid. The English who be- 
sieged the castle flew when they heard the approach 
of WilUam Wallace, with the greatest precipitation. 
Wallace being informed of their flight, pursued them 
with three hundred horsemen, overtook and routed 
them at Closeburn with great slaughter. 

During the pursuit their horses failed, but the men 
like lions and hinds, pursued them on foot, till the 
English diappeared ; even five hundred dead bodies 
were strewed through the fields. Wallace immedi- 
ately after these successes, received continual fresh 
troops, horses and men. Currie, Johnston, Kirkpat- 
rick and Halliday, with seven score of new men, 
joined him at Closeburn. Then he rode to Dumfries, 
and proclaimed peace to all who would assist against 
the Southerons, for the English had almost all left the 
kingdom, and the places of strength were again occu- 
pied by Scotsmen. 

While Wallace was besieging Dundee, the last 
place he had to reduce, Edwarl being convinced of 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. Ill 

the impossibility of conquering Wallace and the Scots 
by dint of arms, plotted how he njight ensnare him 
by bribes, promises or honours, which gained the sub- 
mission of others, &c. All his pretences, &;c. were 
in vain. Wallace answered Edward's emissaries in 
the following words, "I owe my life to, and will wil- 
lingly lay it down for my country, although all other 
Scotsmen should submit to the king, 1 never will give 
obedience or yield allegiance to any power, except to 
the king of Scodand, my rightful sovereign." 

King Edward finding no stratagem could succeed to 
draw Wallace into the snare, he sent Lord Woodstock 
with ten thousand men to march to Stirling bridge, 
to secure that pass, until he should come up with the 
main body, but Wallace heard of Woodstock's com- 
ing, and drew up his eight thousand on Sheriffmuir, 
where the two armies joined battle, and the Scots 
fought most furiously, and cut ten thousand English 
down on the sp6t, for they would not flee, not one of 
them escaped the claymore that day, and all their 
horses, silver, gold, arms and other spoils, were a rich 
booty to the surviving Scots, who then retired beyond 
the bridge and broke down all the passes, and pro- 
ceeded to secure Dridfoord against the enemy. Wal- 
lace then received more reinforcements with Earl 
Malcom, Sir John Graham, Stewart, of Bute, Cum- 
mings, of Badanoch, making an army of 30,000 
strong, who marched to Falkirk, to meet Edward's 
host of one hundred thousand warriors. But, alas, 
Gumming instigated Stewart to dispute the right of 
being commander in chief with Wallace, claiming 
the right to lead the vangUi^rd, and fled with his ten 



112 i THE LIFE OF 

thousand, and Wallace withdrew his ten thousand, 
and left Stewart to encounter the whole English army, 
who cut them all to pieces, but not without the tre- 
mendous loss of thirty thousand killed on the field 
of battle. 

By this time Wallace was surrounded, and was 
compelled to cut his way through Bruce's host, and 
there the Scots again stretched eight thousand South- 
erons on the field as they cut their way through them, 
and proceeded to the Torwood. Wallace, Graham 
,and Lauder remained behind the army with three 
hundred men, and attacked the enemy's wing, and 
there killed three hundred more ; but they were at 
tacked by thirty thousand under Bruce, and were so 
entangled in rescuing each other, and fighting their 
retreat, that they lost Sir John Graham, and were 
forced to swim across Carron river, leaving in all, 
ten thousand more of their enemies dead on the field. 
Next day he proceeded to the field, discovered the 
body of Graham, and entombed him under the fol- 
lowing Epitaph : 

" Mente Monuque potens et Vallacjidus Achates 
Conditurhic Gramius hello, inter fectus ahAngUsP 

Wallace proceeded then to Linlithgow, and sur- 
prised the English in their tents, killed ten thousand 
of them, and the rest fled, losing three thousand in 
the flight ; but the Scots pursued them out of the 
land, and then returned to Edinburgh. Thus Wal- 
lace delivered Scotland a second time from the Eng- 
lish yoke. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. . 113 



^ WALLACB MEETS THE PARLIAMENT, 

Jnd resigns Jiis commission and returns to France^ 
conquered John Lijnn at sea and the country oj 
Guienne. 

On account of some jealousies Wallace resigned 
the command of the Army, and the office of Governor 
General of Scotland, and retired to France, where he 
received great honours and praise. He embarked 
with eighteen of his brave followers at Dundee, and 
as they steered along the English coast about the 
Humber, they saw a sail bearing down upon them. 
They soon discovered with fear that it was John 
Lynn, the cruel and bloody pirate of the seas. Wal 
lace sent all the trembling cowards below, and steered 
the ship himself. Jolin of Lynn with seven score of 
rogues came along side, galled the Scots with guns 
befure they clasped, but when they clasped the Scot- 
tish spears made dreadful havoc among them for near- 
ly an hour ; the merchants too in their woollen har- 
ness, behaved themselves like gallant men in that fight, 
killed or drowned all the seven hundred men and took 
their gold &c. The King knighted Wallace as soon 
as he arrived in France, and gave him gold to sup- 
port the war in Guienne against the English, where 
he marched with 10,000 men, and laid waste all Gui- 
enne, conquered it in five pitched battles, and was 
made Lord of that land. 

K 2 



THE LIFE OF 



WALLACE StHPRISED, BDT CONQTTERS THE TRAITORS 



After he had made a conquest of Guienne, he iv- 
ed like a prince at Shenion, until a proud knight T)f 
France boldly claimed sundry lands and an office in 
Guienne as his hereditarj^ right which were then in 
Wallace's hands, and contrived a hellish plot to cut 
him off, and then to obtain re-possession of his lands. 
Pretending good services to Wallace, he made an ap 
pointment to meet him with fifteen men each at a 
certain place. The treacherous knight, knowing the 
strength and valour of the Scots and his own deep 
design, brought forty armed men and placed them in 
ambush, to sally forth as soon as the dispute should 
begin in order to destroy him. Then the knight ar- 
rived and began to speak in an angry tone, saying, 
" Thou dost possess my lands by no good right." — 
" I have no lands," Wallace replied, " but what the 
king gave me, and what 1 have won in peril of my 
life from the English in a bloody contest." " Then," 
answered the knight sternly, " thou shalt here resign 
them or die, by the powers divine," and drew his 
sword and the whole ambush rushed out and surprised 
the Scots. '• Are these the thanks," said brave Wal- 
lace, " I receive from your hands, for restoring of your 
native lands ? Although I and these my men want 
armour, sixteen against your fifty-five, what then ? 
Here's a claymore made of the truest steel, which thy 
deserving neck shall shortly feel," and with one single 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 115 

Stroke cut down the treacherous knight and bid him 
to purchase a grave for himself. Then the fifty-five 
Gallic warriors surrounded Wallace and his fifteen 
men, who like brave Scots, with noble hearts and true, 
fought boldly and cut down heaps of Frenchmen. — 
The knight's brother fought long and bravely, but 
they were all cut down at last. In sight of this bloody 
contest nine Frenchmen were mowing hay, who, 
when they saw their countrymen worsted and stretch- 
ed on the plain advanced with all speed, each armed 
with a sharp scythe, and made a dreadful attack, as 
if nothing could impede their fury. Wallace, as soon 
as h*^ descried the scythe men coming, immediately 
advanced in head of his men towards the clowns. — 
The first of them made a dreadful cut at Wallace, 
but he being strong, tight and swift, overleaped his 
scythe, and cut his head from his shoulders with a 
back stroke of his claymore. He jumped over the 
next fellow's scythe, and clave his shoulder more than 
half a yard. He leaped over the third's scythe, and 
killed him also, and the fourth he clave through the 
body, and the fifth he pursued and slew also. So 
having despatched five and put the other four to flight, 
he returned to his brave men who had, by that time, 
slain forty-nine of the Frenchmen — and seven fled 
oft' the field of battle. 

The King of France was exceedingly glad at the 
success and victory of Wallace over such a treacher- 
ous murderer, and invited him earnestly to remain at 
court as one of his own household, and live happy 
and secure under his royal protection. Wallace ac- 



116 THE .LIFE OF 

cepted the offer, and remained two years at the 
French court, being diverted with princely sports, in 
favour with kings, lords, and ladies. 



WALLACE dSULTED BY TWO CHAMPIONS, 



Fights and kills them both. 



While Wallace lived at the French court, two Gal- 
lic Champions, who mortally haled the Scots, always 
passing their satirical jokes on Scotsmen and Scotland, 
so enraged our brave champion, that he could no 
longer endure such insults. These two champions used 
always to walk linked in each others arms, and it 
happened one day that Wallace was in a large hall, 
where none did wear arms, and was grossly insulted 
by them, and he asked them, " What means all this 
hatred, when our nations live in firm alliance and 
friendship ? Did we deserve good words for our 
good deeds ? What would you say of your proud 
enemies, when you talk so of your friends ? They 
disdainfully replied in their own language, " The 
EngUsh are our foes, we own, but the Scots for false- 
hood are known every where ;" at which Wallace 
was so enraged, that he gave one of them a founder- 
ing blow and made his nose bleed profusely ; the 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 117 

Other tnen struck at Wallace, supposing his compan- 
ion dead on the floor, but Wallace clasped him so 
hard, that his soul departed from his body ; the other 
had recovered by this time, and again encountered 
him with fury, but Wallace dashed out his brains up- 
on a pillar, saying " Let them take that for their pains 
— what the devil ailed the carles, they were to blame; 
it would have been long before I would ever have 
troubled them. Let all young persons learn from this 
example how to bridle their tongues.'' Many of the 
great lords of France were displeased at this unfortu- 
nate conflict, became jealous, and hated Wallace; but 
the king exonerated him from all blame on this occa- 
sion, and none durst cast a saucy look at him. 



WALLACE AND THE KING DECEIVED BY THE LORDS, 
WAS LED TO FIGHT THE LION. 

As the king loaded Wallace with marks of respect 
and honour, his nobles became envious, hateful and 
malicious towards him, and two of them plotted hel- 
lishly, to effect the destruction of the brave Scots 
hero, to be avenged on him for the death of the two 
champions, their near relations, and to sacrifice the 
life of the Scot in an ignominious manner. These 
two squires come to the king, forged a he, saying, 
" this Scot brags and boasts, and says, that he would 



118 THE LIFE OF 

undertake to [fight your lion, if you will freely give 
him your permission, and he has desired us to ask 
your leave, we are sure he will have a difficult task." 
The King replied with great concern, " I am sorry 
he desireth such a thing, yet I will not deny what- 
ever favour he may ask me while he is in France." 
They then went to Wallace, fabricated another 
story, saying, ' Wallace, the king commands you 
fight his lion without further commands.' Wal- 
lace replied, * whatever is the will of the king, I 
will most gladly fulfil with all my strength," then in- 
stantly repaired to court. A lord at court, when he 
saw Wallace there, most foolishly asked him, if he 
durst fight the fierce lion ? he answered, yes, trulj', if 
the king would have me to do so, or with yourself, I 
fear none of the two, let cowards from kings courts 
be all debarred, I may be worsted, but never shall be 
dared, so long as my nostrils retain the breath of life 
or Scottish blood circle in my veins, like a true Scot 
I will fight and scorn to flee; for why, 1 know that 
man is made to die." Then the king granted that 
Wallace might fight the lion, v/ithout knowing the 
conspiracy laid against the life of the Scot, and brought 
harness for Wallace, but he said, no, I leave that to 
the field, Almighty God only shall shield me, since 
this is but a beast and not a man, with what I have 
I will fight as I can, and will encounter him single as 
I go, though this foe is a fierce, strong, rapacious, cruel 
and relentless enemy. Then he wrapped his mantle 
round one hand and took his claymore in the other, 
and proceeded to the place where the lion raged iu 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE: 119 

expectation of blood. Wallace then thrust his cover- 
ed arm into the lion's mouth, drew a stroke from neck 
to heel and cut him through the body, and then call- 
ed aloud to the king;, " Pray, Sire, is thi*. your whole 
desire thus to expose me to the rage and will of your 
fierce lion ; have you any more to kill? Cause them 
to bring them forth ; such beasts I will quell and will 
obey you so long as I dwell in France. But now 1 
take leave forever of France, some greater action I may 
soon achieve. At Shemon, sir, I thought the other year 
that you would have had other business for me here, 
than to fight a cruel savage beast, therefore I shall 
return to ancient Scotland once more." The king 
perceiving Wallace in anger, meekly replied, " It was 
your own desire, else by the faith of a most Christian 
king, I never would have allowed any such a tiling, for 
men of honour asked it in your name, so you or they 
are only to blame." Wallace replied, " I vow to the 
great God, this seems to me a thing most strange ; by 
all that is good, I know no more of it than a child 
unborn, this is a trick devised by some of those who 
are my secret and malicious enemies." — The king 
called the two squires and caused both their heads to 
be cut off on the judgment of their own confession. — 
Wallace perceiving himself to be envied by the French 
lords and having received a letter from the Scottish 
Barons entreating him to return, so he took his leave 
of the king and court, and proceeded, loaded with 
gold and jewels, to Scotland to fight for the rights and 
liberties of his native country. All the lords and 
ladies about the court grieved and wept on the de- 



120 THE LIFE OF 

parture of the Scots champion, hero, and knight ; but 
no Scotsmen of note 'returned with him, only Lon 
gueville, who would never leave him. 



WAtLACE ARRIVES AT THE MOUTH OF ERNE, 



In the river Tay^ fights the battle of Elcho Park. 



Wallace having arrived at the mouth of the Erne, 
he marched quietly with eighteen valiant men, to 
Elcho-Park: on his way he called at Crawford's 
house, his consul's, who embraced and kissed him 
with joy and gladness of heart, and secured his men 
till they were rested, refreshing them with food and 
drink, until Crawford proceeded to Perth to buy pro- 
visions, when the English noticed his buying of more 
provisions than usual, and seized him and laid h\n\ in 
prison ; but after questioning him, let him go, and 
then armed eight hundred men, and dogged Craw- 
ford home. Crawford arrived and warned Wallace 
to flee, " for I greatly fear says he the rogues are at 
ray heels ; I will give you all the assistance I can give, 
I myself shall be the twentieth man." No sooner had 
the Scots issued forth in armour, than eight, hundred 
English came in sight, and Butler at their head. — 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 121 

When Wallace saw their numbers, he withdrew to 
Elcho Wood, and there fortified a pass with lono- 
trees across the path where they could enter, and on 
either side the place was naturally fortified by a close 
thicket of hollens, that defended them in the flanks 
and rear. Then he addressed his men as follows : 
"The wood is thick, its breadth and length is small, 
if we had food enough, we cfJuld keep the strength' 
meantime let us bravely fight as long as we can stand, 
for our old native country; come, let us to it, either 
do or die; ere they gain the pass, we shall lay some 
of their bellies to the wind/' By this time Butler had 
Crawford's house surrounded, seized his wife, and 
vowed to burn her to death, if she did not tell where 
the Scots warriors had gone. Wallace having issued 
from the thicket to reconnoitre his enemies,and see the 
fate of his cousin's family, just when they were about 
to burn Mrs. Crawford, called aloud to them to "stay 
their hand, for here am I, and own myself your foe- 
why should ye torment an honest, innocent woman ^ 
come forth to me and we will end the strife; it were 
a prodigious sin to kill the female Scot, art thou a 
christian .;> tell me yea or nay; in all my victories, 1 
always saved the priests, women and children." But- 
ler threw his face, bit his lip, and heaved with venom 
and spite, when he saw brave Wallace in his pres- 



ence. 



Then the English fiercely marched after him, as 
he retired to his place of strength in the thicket, and 
attacked the Scots boldly at the pass, which was 
nobly defended, and were repulsed with the loss of 
fifteen men Jiilled on the first onset. They made a 
aecond and more desperate attack in three divisions, 



112 THE LIFE OF 

at three different points at the same moment. Wal 
lace saw their divisions advance, and ordered his 
Longuevilie with six men, Crawford with six, to keep 
the weakest parts of the strength, and Wallace kept 
five with himself to meet Butler at the pass. — 
Wallace then allowed some men to come in, on pur- 
pose to ensnare them. Seven men entered, looked 
very timid, and were immediately cut down ; but 
Butler withdrew from the entrance when he saw the 
fate of his men, and Longuevilie and Crawford made 
so grand a defence, that the enemy were forced to 
retire for the night. 

Butler set his watches, and retired to feast on good 
provisions, while the wearied Scots had only water to 
drink ; but Wallace, with cheerful countenance, and 
encouraging words, made a single night of fasting ea- 
sy to them, and before morning, under the cover of a 
thick fog, sallied out upon the English, killed Butler 
and thirty of his men, carried wounded Crawford off 
the field, retired to Methven wood, marched off to 
Birnam wood, and thence to Athol and Lorn, where 
they were reduced to the last extremity by famine. 

There, as Wallace slept alone in the woods, (for 
he had retired from his men, and had fallen asleep,) 
five sanguinary assassins, who had been bound, on 
pain of death, to take Vv^allace, d'^ad or alive, drew 
near and attempted to bind Wallace ; but he rose 
like a lion in his full strength, daslied the brains out 
of the first against a tree, despatched the other three 
with the dead man's sword, and two fled. The en- 
raged champion pursued and smote them both to the 
ground. Wallace having found a boy with some 



'SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 123 

provisions on the hill, and having fed his men with 
them, he marched directly to Rannoch plains where 
he found the castle commanded by Scotsmen, who 
received him into the fort, and promised to obey his 
commands, and swore allegiance to Robert Bruce un- 
der Wallace. The lord of the castle sent his three 
valjant.sons, and twenty other brave warriors to fight 
the batdes of their country, under the renowned chtef- 
tain of Scotland, who there displayed the Scottish 
banner, and marched through the country to recruit 
his army. He landed at Dunkeld, put all the garri- 
son to the -sword, feasted five days on good provi- 
sions, took all their gold and jewels, and returned 
agam to the north, considering themselves too few to 
besiege the town of Perth. 

In Ross, Bute, Argyle, Buchan, Murray, &c. he 
collected an army of seven thousand men, and march- 
ed straight to Aberdeen. The English all fied on the 
approach of the invincible Wallace. Clement, the 
brave knight of Ross, came to Wallace with a gallant 
company of warriors ; Sir John Ramsay, also joined 
h.m, with many others, and he then deemed his pow 
er sufficient to place and keep judges over the land, 
and establish garrisons in all strong holds. 



124 THE LIFE OF 



SIEGE OF PERTH. 



Wallace having thus settled the goverhment of the 
kingdom, proceeded immediately to reduce the castles 
remaining in the hands of the English. He first be- 
sieged Perth, and took it b}^ storm, killing 1080 in tlie 
breach of, and round the walls, and garrisoned it by 
Scotsmen. Sinclair, Lundie, Lindsay, Boyd, Adam 
Wallace, Seaton, Lauder, Dundas, Scott, &c. fought 
with Wallace in that engagement. 

Wallace then proceeds to the south, where he 
found that Edward Bruce had arrived from Ireland 
with fifty men of his mother's relations, and had al- 
ready taken Kirkcudbright with a garrison of nine 
score : Wigtown castle he had also reduced, and 
joined Wallace most cheerfully, and then marched 
with him to Lochmaben, where Wallace like a true 
and faithful Scot, resigned the command of the army 
to him, promising to crown him king of Scotland, if 
his brother Robert did not come home to possess his 
throne. 

Prince Edward Bruce remained in Lochmaben, 
but Wallace proceeded to Cummock ; so Scotland 
was the third time delivered by the brave and faithful 
Wallace, and then had rest from wars and ravages of 
their enemies. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 125 



MONTEITH BETRAYS WALLACE. 



When king Edward found it impracticable to con- 
quer and subjugate Scotland as long- as Wallace lived, 
he called Aymer de Vallance to him, and consulted 
with him how he might betray him by his own friends. 
Edward promised to give him any thing he should 
ask, except his queen and crown, if he would tak« 
Wallace dead or alive. Vallance then proceeded to 
Bothwell to execute the hellish plot. He promise. 
in Edward's name, to give John Montieth the Earl- 
dom of Lennox and three thousand pounds of Eng- 
lish gold. " Fy,'^ said Monteith, " it would be a 
mighty shame, yea, you and I would be very blame- 
able, if we betrayed a man who had done so great 
services to his king and country ; he is of our nation 
too, and is the governor of the land, and captain gen- 
eral of our forces ; for my part 1 declare, come weel^ 
come woe, I never will condescend to treat him so.'' 
Vallance replied, " if you did understand what a 
shedder of Christian blood he is, you would not plead 
for him, but rather contribute to break his power ; be- 
sides the king has no desire to take away his lif., but 
to confine him so that both nations might ease 
from war, and that he should not disturb the Cf mo": 
peace." 

The poor souled Monteith began tnen to aver 
when he heard that he was not to be massacred, an». 
having formerly wished him in Edward's power prf>- 
L 2 



UQ THE, LIFE OF 

vided he would spare his hfe, he half resolved to 
take the bribe. Vallance when he saw Monteith 
thrown into hesitation, employed all his deep cunning 
and Satanic art to induce him to accept of the bribe, 
and told him down three thousand pounds of English 
gold, saying " this yon shall have and Lennox at 
your will, if you will now fulfil the king's desire," — 
Monteith could no longer resist the temptation, he re- 
ceived the gold and bound himself to carry Wallace 
and put him securely into the hands of the Eng- 
lish ! ! ! 

Vallance merrily scampered off to London and 
left Montieth to fulfil his horrid contract ! Edward 
sent private letters to Monteith, urging him to execute 
quickly what he had undertaken. Monteith read 
over the letter and then called his sister's son, and 
caused him to swear to conceal the plot : " go" said 
Monteith, " and wait on Wallace as a domestic, and 
when a fit opportunity occurs, be sure to embrace it, 
and call me and I will secure him." The villain 
promised to fulfil all his commands. 

Meantime, as the God of Providence would have 
it, Wallace wrote to Robert Bruce to come into Scot- 
land and receive quiet possession of his throne and 
kingdom. Bruce returned a letter promising to meet 
Wallace on Glasgow muir on the first of July. So 
Wallace proceeded to Glasgow muir, and none un- 
derstood where he went but Kierly, and the young 
traitor in Wallace's service, who on the eighteenth 
night warned Monteith, who caused sixty men to 
march from Dumbarton and to lurk near Glasgow 
town, and sent out a spy to notice the house where 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 127 

Wallace resided. Karbreston, or the cottage of Lum- 
loch was its name, and as Wgillace and Kierly went 
to sleep, the young fellow went out and informed his 
uncle of the fit time to secure him. Then Monteith 
called his sworn traitors to surround the iiouse, slew 
Kierly and seized upon Wallace, wlio rose like a lion ; 
but ail ! his claymore, his dagger, and all were pre- 
viously stolen away by his treacherous servant, and 
lie could find nothing to use in his own defence ex- 
cept a bench by which he killed two of the traitors. 
At last Monteith spoke subtily to Wallace, and told 
him that the English surrounded the house, and that 
it would be in vain to make any resistance, a single 
man unarmed against a host of armed men under Clif- 
ford. Th(^y will save your life, so make no resis- 
tance, but come along to Dumbarton with me, and 
you will be as safe as at home ; we have come to 
save your life, see we have no weapon ; and Wal- 
lace believing all he said in the house submitted to 
their will, on condition that Monteith would fulOl iiis 
promise to save his life. " Only as a prisoner the 
English must see you" said Monteith " bound with 
cords, else they will take you from me." So tiiey 
cunningly slipped cords on his hands, and bound 
them down with counter cords underneath, and led 
him bound to Solwaysands, and there delivered him 
into Vallance's and Clifford's hands, who first con- 
fined him in Carlisle prison, and afterwards conveyed 
him to the Tower of f^ondon. As he passed through 
England, great nudtitudes of men, women and chil- 
dren, assembled from all quarters of the land, to gaze 
upo>n the illustrious prisoner. 



128 THE LIFE OF ' 

During his imprisonment tiiere he occupied his fcw 
remaining days in holy devotion, especially delight- 
ing in his Psalter ; and before his execution made his 
bequest to Helen Mar, his second wife, and bequeath- 
ed his private property to the brave Lanerkers, who 
first fought for their country, in the following words : 
" As the first who stemmed with me the torrent, 
which with God's help we so often laid into a calm, I 
mention to you my faithful Lanerkers. Many of them 
bled and died in the conquest ; and to their orphans, 
with the children of those who j'et survive, I consign 
all the world's wealth that yet belongs to William 
Wallace ; Ellerslie and its estates are theirs. To 
Bruce, my sovereign and my friend, the loving com- 
panion o{ the hour in which 1 freed you, my Helen, 
from the arms of violence ! to him I bequeath this 
heart, knit to him by bands more dear even than loy- 
alty. Bear it to him ; and when he is summoned to 
his Heavenly throne, then let his heart and mine fill 
up one urn. To Lord Ruthven, to Bothwell, to 
Scrymgeour, and Kirkpatrick, I give my prayers and 
blessings." 

He was then conducted to the house of William 
Delect in Fen church-street, and the day following, 
the 23d of August 1305, was brought to Westmin- 
ster on horseback, accompanied with knights, the 
mayor, sheriff, and aldermen, and was placed on the 
south bench of the great Hall, crowned there in de- 
rision with a laurel, while Sir Peter Malory, the Chief 
Justice, impeached him with treason ; to which he 
boldly replied : " I never was a traitor, nor could I be 
to the king of England." He impeached him also 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 129 

with burning towns, levelling castles, killing the Eng- 
lish, &c. but Wallace considered these things all 
right in case of national war. But innocence became 
guilt at the bar of envy and malice, and all his heroic 
virtues were declared capital crimes, and he was tried 
by the laws, and hanged, drawn and quartered by 
the administrators of injustice in England. 

His head was fixed on London bridge, and the 
four quarters of his body were placed on the gates 
of the four principal cities of his native country! 

These acts of betraying, condemning, and butcher 
ing the greatest statesman, the best general, the most 
intrepid soldier, the most feeling benefactor of man- 
idnd that ever graced the annals of the world, incen- 
sed the Scottish nation beyond all bounds. 

The brave, the generous, the disinterested William 
Wallace, the deliverer of his country, was thus betray- 
ed and butchered. This was the greatest misfortune 
tiiat could ever have befallen Scotland ; it was inex- 
pressibly afilictingto his friends and honest defenders ; 
and who could have been so base as not to befriend 
the restorer of their liberties ? even every peasant in 
the country, every shepherd on the hill, commisser- 
ated the fate of Wallace, and their hearts burned whh 
a desire of avenging his blood on the head of Ed ward. 
As for Monteith, all men, his friends and enemies, 
t^onsidered him the basest of the human race, whose 
criminality will adhere to his name and family as long 
as Scotland is a nation. He became a traitor to his 
best friend ! a traitor to his country ! a betrayer of 
innocent blood ! an assassin in heart and practice ! and 
the ignominy of his treachery will be reflected on his 



130 THE LIFE OF 

happy posterity, while the annals of Scottish history 
record his deed ! Hence the poet expresses the feel- 
ings of the nation upon the sad event of his death: 

" Envious death, which ruins all, 

Hatii wrought this sad lamented fall , 

Of Wallace ; and no more remains 

Of him, than what an urn contains; 

We ashes for our Hero have. 

He for his armour a cold grave ; 

He left the earth, too low a state, 

And by his acts overcome his fate ; 

His soul death had not power to kill ; 

His noble deeds the world do till 

With lasting trophies of his name. 

O ! hadst thou virtue lov'd or fame 

Thou couldst not have exulted so, 

Over a brave, betray'd— just foe, 

Edward ! nor seen those limbs exposM 

To public shame — fit to be clos'd 

As relics, in a holy shrine, 

But now the infamy is thine : 

His end crowns him with glorious bays, 

And stains the brightest of thy praise. 

O false IMonteith I your honour's gone, 
Your fame is lost, the deed is done I 
A traitor to your country's son, 
The bravest e'er her laurels won. 
You did him cast in London Tower, 
In Edward's hands' and Edward's power; 
Innocent blood you offer'd free, 
A sacrifice for Liberty. 



SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 131 

You the price of blood receivfjd, 
The bravest of the brave deceived ; 
Now infamy will haunt your name, 
As traitor's everlasting shame. 

Few princes have had the honour of such an illus- 
trious captain, or such an opportunity to immortalize 
their fame, by an act of genercfus magnanimity, either 
to treat him with kind hospitality, or to liberate him 
with princely greatness. Few Princes could have 
been so base, mean and sanguinary, as to exult over 
a betrayed, a renowned and unconquered enemy, and 
to massacre him in cold blood, except that very Ed- 
ward, who has subjected his countrymen to the endu- 
rance of those torments of internal remorse and shame, 
which proclaim the mean, dastardly, cruel, and un- 
gen'-rous spirit of one of the kings of England, in all 
sucreding ages. 

" Three things," says John Blair, " unite to im- 
mortalize the fame of noble Wallace ; his own inno- 
cence ; the tyranny of Edward ; and the treachery of 
Monteith." 

Cruel tyranny usually defeats her own purposes. 
The ignoble and barbarous manner in which Wallace 
Iwas treated, in instituting a mock trial by foreigners, 
^fixing his divided body to the city gates of his native 
country, for which he bled and died, roused every 
ispark of Caledonian valour and independence i exas- 
perated the nation and animated them to revenge, 
and excited all the friends and admirers of Wallace 
to raUy round the standard of Bruce, to avenge the 



132 THE LIFE OF 

death of Wallace, to shake off the yoke of such an in- 
exorible tyrant, and to fill the Scottish throne with a 
lawful sovereign. 

The innocence of the purest of mortals on earth 
could have no chance or protection in ihe presence of 
such an avaricious and sanguinary JMonarch ; and the 
treachery of a traitor, who betrays innocent blood and 
affects the happiness of a liberal nation can never be 
forgiven; it entails the greatest infamy on the name 
of his posterity, while tlie remembrance of his crime, 
harbours in the minds of the nation. 



tB N '29 



